Closed [Tarsin's Boarding House] So Show Me (Venser)

[Naia Whitewater]

Thread Recanted.

Naia's Speech | Thoughts | 81 Spring, 4 bells after noon, 514AV

Naia made it to the Boarding House easily enough, though more time was spent on deciding her length of stay and grade of room than she did on journey across the water. She'd wound up opting for the middle option, the ache to her bones and body lending her little care for the quality of the room and bed, and her base knowledge of what work was available in the floating city aiding her greatly in making the decision not to overspend, the word 'discount' eventually meaning that her length of stay was bound to remain around a single season.*55 Miza to be deducted

With all said and done, Naia dumped her gear in her room newly rented room, eyes shifting from bed to corner to chest and desk, having to stop herself from act too quickly in unpacking and listing items that needed to be bought. ‘What am I even here for?’ The question rung hollow in her mind – Syliras was supposed to be her fresh start, what was Ravok? A break? A holiday? Would she once more find herself dragged back to Nyka once the next season was done? What did she have there?

A shudder shot down her spine and her gnosis writhed on her stomach, her head locked in the direction of the sea, mouth running dry as the sound of crashing waves filled her ears, before her skin rippled with gooseflesh and she reminded herself what happened with the consumption of fish. It was too risky to live a life at sea, lest she found a new pod, and the Lia accepted her with all her oddities.

She clicked her tongue and shifted the weight of her head from side to side, her exhaustion, by then, at a state where sleep would likely not come, and she soon enough turned her mind to more immediate matters - learning the city for what it was and finding work. She'd heard the rumours of Ravok, some from her travelling companions and others from fellow Nykans, the vaguest of which coming from her own pod; where thoughts on any peoples who worshiped other Gods were regarded with a scoff and cuss, a snide remark following about a lack of appreciation for the glory of Laviku. But then there was Ireth.

Sweet, dear Ireth. The woman with crystal eyes and a musical laugh, whose love of the waters deep were as great as Naia’s own, her penchant for tales and quiet charm leaving the Svefra to tend towards kinder thoughts of the floating city. Streets that ran red with blood and bore citizens wrought with worry could no produce such a kindred soul, could it?

Rough, gentle. Chaotic, peaceful. Kind, hateful. Which is it, if either?’

Her change of clothes was mechanical, shifting from her dirtied pants and blouse and discarding her cloak, a simple dress and clean pair of shoes worn in place, the feeling of fresh clothing more than enough to set her at body at ease, even if her mind continued to bubble and whirl. ‘Baths, baths, baths. Are there baths here? Or is it the lake? Ireth said it was clean enough to drink, if I recall correctly. Laviku, how many seasons ago was that?’

Ravok was the first new city that she’d been to in over half a decade, her youth one that came with shifts and changes so often that any form of attachment was quickly thought better of, no time or care or real desire to keep a keepsake of any sort. Nyka had weened her off of that little aspect, with books and trinkets and family heirlooms shoved in her face and mused upon from the moment of her arrival in the City of the Four Celestials. And now it lied in a pile of ashes.

She let a curse slip from her lips as she went over and through the bulk of her belongings, a smile forming and slipping as she went over the items that she’d bought that day with Arch, after the madness that had happened in the city the few days prior. ‘Gradmama… those people, everything that happened-’

Her thoughts ground and halted, and the items in her hand were thrown with no care for direction, the Svefra shutting down her train of mind as she stopped herself before she admitted how alone she’d managed to find herself – No Sekai, no Arch, no Ireth nor Hedyla. There was no one she truly knew left in Nyka, save for the Ravokian woman. Perhaps the Svefra could send letters? Were they quite close enough for such a thing?

She pressed her lips and made her way out of the room and down the hall, hand trailing over the wall to her right, attention caught between looking where she walked and what she touched. The last time she’d touched wood was years ago, Nyka a city set in stone of reds and white, with murals and decoration varying so little that her stomach would sometimes turn at their sight. How had people been able to come up with a dozen different expressions for the one Celestial? With so little change in theme and style? The same gaudy coins and dramatic texturing, each scene some frame in a story that stretches so far and wide that it wouldn’t be surprising if not even the artists knew where it began and ended.

A sharp giggle from a nearby room brought the world surging back, and the Svefra all at once took note how heavy her step, how quick her breath, and how scattered her mind, managing to pull herself together just enough to dart down the single set of stairs without a stumble. She earned herself a half worried look from one of the younger girls at work, her eyebrow arching high as Naia set her clothes straight and gave a haphazard smile.

When the short stare broke and the girl continued off, Naia’s thoughts shot back to the dwindling day. ‘It’s later than I thought it was,’ she rolled her shoulders as her steps took her slowly towards the main door, gaze surveying the men and women who were spread out about the place, some firm and fine of form, other looking as though they’d seen better days. ‘To dwell on the past is to waste the present. I’m here for a reason – some reason. I need to remember that.’

As she neared the door, another man broke through, his hair a blonde and eyes a striking blue, his height remarkably close to her own and his form firm, his age likely not so much greater than her own.

"Excuse me- Sir-" Naia’s lips curled into a winsome smile, hand held awkwardly out as she tried to gently wave for the blonde’s attention without too much of a fuss, gaze falling south on his form before rising once more to seek his gaze. "Do you happen to know where I can find work, or employment, or... anything of the sort? I…" The question – questions – came out strange, and she pressed her lips gave a grimace. Her people skills had certainly dulled in the last season, and she found herself throwing an uncertain look to the other around the room, half wondering if she should have asked one them instead. “I’m new to Ravok,” the breath that left her was heavy, and the Svefra could scarcely help the brushing back of her hair as she concluded her words, nor the way she held her weight as she waited to see if she was lucky enough to gain a response and direction.

[Venser Rush]

It was sixteen bells, and Mikayas had allotted Venser an amount of time for a break for the day, though the Rush twin knew it to mean that on this day, he was not to return. Mikayas, when he allowed Venser the chance to leave before sun's set, was normally arranging the commissioning of an especially pricey sculpture or working out the details of a continued association with his art collectors. While the man kept a large portion of his works in his shop, so many that Venser knew about were sold and cast through Ravok. The Rush twin could even see them at times in his wanderings, but it was neither here nor there to reflect upon the prevalence of his master's work in the city of Ravok.

What was there to do this evening but reflect? And so, as the young man traversed the way leading from Mikayas' Emporium for Sculpted Curiosities, he began to draw a thought,

With this evening, I have naught to do but delve into the intricacies of Djed and unravel the mysteries of what transcended the mundane. Magic is the answer to the mysteries of the universe and just as much so, the mysteries of the human soul and the djed that binds both together and encompasses all that is. Djed is identity.

The thought pushed Venser through the threshold of the Merchant Quarter, the young man reaching the building that housed the room that he called his own. Tarsin's Boarding House was his home for the past few years, the Rush twins using Verin's inheritance and wages to pay for their rent until the day came when Venser began earning an income as well. An engraver and a bartender, the former with piety and a love for Rhysol, lord of Ravok and deity of Chaos and Betrayal, the latter an enigma to most, the notable exception being Verin, with even Mikayas the Sculptor left in the darkness about the most intimate details of the Rush twin's existence. Though recent events had come to complicate this enigmatic persona.

It was the nature of a student of the magical arts to hide their affiliation, to obscure it under the guise of the mundane, in order to allow them the freedom to work in peace. Magic was a power both feared and revered, with its uses both destructive and malevolent as well as benevolent and constructive. Ultimately, the power was a tool to be shaped and moulded by its user, showing the practitioner their true intentions and personality.

The young man's thoughts were interrupted by words, garbled in tone and strangled in execution. Crystalline eyes directed themselves from the floor and towards the woman, taking immediate note of her appearance. A rather attractive young woman, likely no more than a coupling of years his junior, with dark hair and eyes of the brightest of blues. An appreciative smile cast upon his features before his features twisted to reflect the thought that her questioning brought on. Her first two sentences dripped with inexperience, the woman obviously of new blood to Ravok, her last sentence only proving the point with redundant phrasing.

Venser paused for a moment before feeling a tingle of familiarity, a budding awareness that sprung from the woman's eyes, an echo rising from the past season and a certain scenario, a name that the young man nearly forgot springing into his mind before he quelled the budding awareness. Was the woman a Svefra like he had been? The Rush twin wondered, but ultimately, with little knowledge of the culture and little desire to know about it, he addressed her questions with answers rather than with new questions,

"If you are new to Ravok with the intention to stay in the city, it would be of benefit to go to the Citizenship office and draw up your papers so that you are welcome in the city and given a measure of protection." The blonde took a step forward, his smile widening just slightly before he said, "A woman as lovely as yourself deserves the protection of the Ebonstryfe, after all."

Venser paused again, realizing that he had not quite answered her question, but instead rolled off on a different tangent, the young man momentarily distracted by the woman before he threw himself into an answer, "There are a variety of places to work in Ravok, though most will ask what you have to offer them in return. The docks is always a good place to start, or the Merchant's Quarter if you are more business-minded or an artisan."

A helpful mindset was what had emerged from the young man as he exited his thought process. Ordinarily, Venser would become irritated when he was interrupted from his thoughts, but the appeal of the woman in front of him in combination with Mikayas the Sculptor's lecture on being more pleasant to customers encouraged the young carver to be more... amicable. Perhaps it was a benefit to be that way? Only time would tell.

[Naia Whitewater]

Naia's Speech | Thoughts | oocIt's getting late, so this could very well suck. I'll see about an edit in the morning

The words rolled over her, and Naia was left breathless for a moment. It was the answer to a question she hadn't asked, the words that played on the man’s lips once more tearing unfavourable thoughts to the mind. Intention to stay, papers of citizenship, protection. Her mind blanked and buckled, a crease forming on her forehead as she mulled over the prospect – Nyka had been a battle all too different. There were no papers, no notes or admission. It was the city and the people, the things that went bump in the night and the integration of one’s life into the community that made them a citizen. Don’t steal, don’t insult a monk, live in a quarter whose values much one’s own, don’t go out at night.

There was something to the way he spoke of it – how it was the first comment to spring from his lips and the holding of his jaw and gaze as he spoke, the way he held his form and the quirk to his expression. Just as inhospitable to outsiders as Nyka was, it seemed that another similarity to Ravok was bleeding clear. You’re screwed if you don’t belong.

She felt a shiver strike her spine, the weariness of so long mounted in travel, and the jarring disappointment that had thus far struck her dampening her over tired vigour. ‘What are the conditions of citizenship? Can I claim it for the benefits and leave once business is concluded? What consequences are there?’ The questions rung hollow, Naia’s sights lazily raking over the features of the man before her, and flattery knocked her breath and brought her mind back to the ground, another word added to the growing list of things she must further learn of – Ebonstryfe.

‘Ireth left much out, it seems.’

Naia’s sweet little smile, although overwhelmed at first, eased as conversation continued, the familiar tone and pace that came with light flirting aiding greatly in her quick calming, proving to be one of the few things that she found comfort in with consistency. She felt her stance shift and gaze soften, smile turn to a smirk and arms cross against her chest, the rush and thrill that came with the game of flirting and flattery enough to negate the ache in her muscles and the crawling of her gnosis.

By the time that the actual explanation came – and it was one far more in depth than she expected – Naia’s thoughts had travelled so far and wide that it felt that far more than a half chime had come and passed. “That’s different,” it was a rather dull statement in content, though the trailing of Naia’s voice and the increase pitch made a resounding point of her pure delight, her last word slipping out more as a whisper “Good,”. It was different. So, so, so very different. She could speak and learn and make her decision right, no speaking to uniform faces with monotone voices, no taking of her skills for granted, and no life decided on the whim and decision of some man or woman behind a desk. It was still up to the person, of course, but the slither of freedom was a much needed relief and point of difference.

A moment of thought and silence passed, the Svefra gathering her thoughts and musings before she backtracked the conversation. “You mentioned papers? And a citizenship office, where can I find-” she cut off herself before throwing a look behind her, brow quirking apologetically as she realised her fault. “If you have the time, I'm sorry. Would you be able to tell me where I can find it? As I am assuming that it takes priority over all else?”

She shot a glare at the world behind the man, trailing over the scattering of people and the way the city was crafted. “Though I suppose I can always wander aimlessly, perhaps see what I can manage on my own- or just give up and ask another attractive stranger.”

[Venser Rush]

Though Venser was Ravokian by birth, and not prone to the generosity and understanding that was supposedly common in such 'charitable' cities as Syliras, Venser Rush was by no means the type to allow a woman, a non-citizen that he now knew about to be subject to a life of enslavement. While the Rush twin favoured slavery, and had, in the previous season, subjected a man to a life of slavery in Rhysol's dark betrayal, the blonde was honourable, and did not wish the life upon a woman that did not deserve it. Venser offered the woman a smile, stepping forward as he looked around, a chuckle escaping his lips as he noted a familiar young couple climbing the stairs to their room, an elderly woman sitting in a distant chair.

A combination of visitors to the city and residents, like Venser himself, likely those who either could not afford a permanent residence or had other business arrangements to attend to. Venser's reason for living within Tarsin's was because his and Verin's previous house, at the death of their father at Venser's own hands, was tainted with the blood of a filthy patriarch, the place casting nightmares into the minds of both Venser and his brother, and as such, they preferred a place where they could call their own without being haunted.

Venser, of course, had plans to eventually purchase his own property and make it his own, but while he had collected a small fortune, he had other expenses that required tending to. The tuition to the Institute of Higher Learning was by far the most prominent, though gold mizas meant nothing in the face of the knowledge that Venser Rush was granted through the investment. Magicks that Venser prized and lusted after were at his fingertips, and in this, he was content. It was supplementary to the deal he had made with Miro the previous season.

Venser's thoughts cast aside again as he listened to the rather attractive young woman speak, a smirk materializing upon his expression as she asked him for directions in conjunction with the covert compliment. Venser knew his physical attractiveness, but never quite played into it. The needs of the body, while present, were inferior to the desire to learn. A breath of air escaped the Rush twin's lips before he mustered the woman's answer,

"I've never had to deal with the Citizenship, due to the fact that I was born here, but I know for a fact that the Citizenship Office is in the center of Ravok, near the Temple of the Black Sun. I always have time for a pretty face, I could take you there, if you want."

Venser smiled at the woman after he spoke, deciding that another night of cataloging philosophy into his journal was one thing, but instead, Venser could allow himself the option of learning more about her. He could also spend the time to interact with her Aura and investigate it with the power he had acquired earlier in the season. Auristics was an ability Venser loved to use, for it allowed him a sort of knowledge that could expand upon any and apply to any given scenario. Of course, for the moment, he would not do so. He'd learn more about her so he had a better vantage point to look from. Auristics required enough focus to initiate, he did not want to tax himself by wasting time on drab, unimportant details.

The Rush twin quickly realized that both he and the woman had delved into conversation without introducing themselves. The Rush twin chuckled slightly before extending his hand to her, "I am Venser Rush. Will you tell me your name?"

[Naia Whitewater]

Naia's Speech | Thoughts

Being born in the city was cause enough to be declared a citizen, that much made some sense to Naia. She figured that perhaps the same held true in Nyka, the city accepting of all life birthed within her walls, regardless of the parentage and whether or not they themselves were accepted into the community. That being said, it was an odd thought to her that one would not be completely clear on the workings of their own city, though perhaps Nyka was different - it was more of a dysfunctional pod than anything else the Svefra could quite comprehend, most people knew how everything worked. Nyka, Nyka, Nyka.

There was an indomitable confidence as the man spoke on, a pressing of knowledge and a shadow in his eye, the slow dimming of Syna's light doing well to set off a delightful glow and gleam to his short, somewhat messy, hair. He was a strange mix of odds and ends, she thought, expression slipping to a smirk of her own as the blonde broke into a more playful look, how own little flirt thrown back at her.

"I would appreciate it very much, indeed," she hummed, a breathless chuckle leaving her as the smirk on her lips died down slightly, taking the name to memory as she did the face of the man before her. Venser Rush. "It's a pleasure, Venser, thank you," She let his name roll off her tongue, careful in her articulation as she ensured her pronunciation was correct, before taking his hand in hers and the thought of having to return in kind hit her.

Whitewater was the name of a pod, her family before Nyka - her sisters and brothers of blood and toil. She hadn't been a true Whitewater for over half a decade, keeping the name only because her father of blood did not change his upon hitting Nykan soil, and the Svefra's initial intention to return to the surging seas after the man's death. Lazily was her reason for not changing to the name of her grandparents - whatever in Laviu's name it was - and how much of a both she'd thought reintroductions would prove to be. However, times have changed and as had cities, she no longer had a reason to cling to an outdated name.

"Naia," she said, pressing her lips and tilting her head, shaking Venser's hand as a slight chuckle of her own bubbled from her lips. "Whitewater is the name I suppose you could use as my last, though, it's hollow- doesn't hold much meaning," there was hesitance in the way she spoke, a tingling that blazed up her size and told very well how far and high her gnosis had shifted, gaze slipping towards the ocean before settling once more on the blue of Venser's eyes.

She retrieved her hand after a moment more and straightened her dress, rocking on her heel before giving a mischievous look and starting in the direction that she assumed to be towards the city's center. "Shall we?" It was a somewhat loud call back at the man, only the shortest of looks thrown behind to see if he was able and willing to make her pace, the Svefra rolling her shoulders as thought lingered on what it was she could do should the man prove to find her not worth the effort.

'Let's hope me finds myself half as interesting as I do him.'

[Venser Rush]

Naia Whitewater.

The name flowed like the waves of the oceans that the woman presumably hailed from, Venser noting again the presence of the ocean's blue within her eyes. The Rush twin was lost in them for a long moment, imagining the unfamiliar sensation of the ocean's deep, waves sloshing in her gaze, a captivating, intriguing sort of feeling. Venser knew nothing of the ocean but its appearance, though he could relate it to being the same thing as the lake, though presumably, filled with saltwater rather than freshwater. His life was, naturally, surrounded by water, but he never felt at home in it.

In fact, the young man was unable to swim. The previous season had indicated this to him more than anything else, a near drowning experience and the humiliation of being saved by a slave still fresh in his mind, the incident itself boring scars of deep-seeded anxiety while in the water into his mind. He hated the weakness involved in such petty apprehension, and the Rush twin, as a result, took great care to avoid the water when he could, entering only to bathe and using ravosalas are sparingly as he could do without severely dismantling the structure of his daily life.

The thought lingered for a tick longer before he listened to her reasoning as to the hollowness of her surname, if it could be called that. She threw it about dismissively, as if she didn't want it, a point that Venser himself could identify with. The Rush name was one associated with bad memories, the death of a mother never known, the abuse from a father that never loved. The murder of said father, only so in title but never by action. The Rush twin remembered still the night of his death, and the habit persisted of rubbing the scars on his left arm with his right hand as the flashes of the past transpired.

Hopefully, when the action occurred, Naia was turned around, though she quickly spun to face him, Venser taking several strides forward, to keep in pace with her as a smile graced his features, tension festering for a tick before he forced it down, shelving it in the depths of his mind as he led the woman across the way. A ravosala was stopped nearby, its bow clearly pointed towards the city center, the ravosolaman, a thin, gaunt, middle-aged man, looked up at the two, tipping his hat in greeting before motioning for the pair to enter.

Venser suffered a moment of apprehension before he shook the thoughts of the water and floating on it aside, making his way into the ravosala, then extending his hand out towards the woman, offering her passage onto the small boat.

"The ravosola will take us straight to the city's center. It's not a very long ride, saves us the walk. I can show you around the city a bit after you've got everything else sorted out. Sounds fair?"

The Rush twin grinned at the woman, waiting for her to make her choice.

[Naia Whitewater]

Speech | Thoughts

She rolled her shoulders and let out a shallow breath, a hand moving numbly over her stomach for a moment - as though running her fingers over the rolling wave pattern of her gnosis would make tingle and thrive with the thrill of waters ravage - before her own gaze was caught dead in the crystal of the man whose acquaintance she'd only just made. She'd almost forgotten the importance of watching people. Of taking in their every habit and tick, the way their eyes shifted at certain sights and breath held at others. Too long she'd been in strange company, where the enemy was not the people who walked at her flanks, but the things that lived wild in the woods. A mere season was all she'd needed to lose her practice and game, it seemed.

There was some off that passed in him in the moment that she caught, and she followed his gaze to the water's edge, holding her tongue as she bade herself not to cause offense to her oh-so attractive company, and her tongue was shortly held between her teeth. In a start he shook himself awake and pressed on, Naia blinking thrice in surprise as she watched his lean figure move, quite unable to prevent her eyes falling southward on his form for a short moment-snapping to attention at the extension of a hand.

The proposition was a fun one indeed, and Naia threw the man a winsome rolling of her eyes and a fair grin, the so called 'ravosola' ready to be taken. "Who would I be to decline such a kind offer?" she hummed, brow arching as her lips curved in cheek and her hand went to his, pulling herself onto the boat with little worry for the keeping of herself clean and dry. "So as we're-" she halted her words mid-thought, a frown creasing her expression as she freely and gladly showcased her thought and feeling.

To travel beyond dusk was to bargain with Dira herself, and to depart from the safety of one's home in Leth's reign in Nyka was a equally foolish act- but what of Ravok? What of the floating city of the God of Chaos? "Is it safe to be out at night?" she passed the words quietly and quickly, leaning in somewhat close to Venser as she half whispered her question. The ferryman seemed the sort kind enough- but the Svefra knew better than to trust on site- even the marvel of a man before her left her hesitant. But she needed to leave her trust somewhere, and for the time being? It was he who held her faith. She just prayed to dear Laviku she would not regret it dearly in a week's time.

[Nemesis]

. Thread Grade Pending Greetings! If you decide to return to us, Venser, fling me a PM and your grade will be posted. Naia, do you still believe this thread to be recanted, thus not wanting a grade? Thank ye, -Nemesis