Closed [World's End Grotto]Drinking and Drunks[Lani Stranger]

[Rykanis Dakshata]

As the two of them sat at the table, Rykanis gave Lani another once over. He only now noticed her height, which for a human would be considered oddly tall. She was still at least a half foot below him in height, but compared to most humans, particularly females, she was quite tall. Along with that she had odd utterly black eyes. Rykanis could not help wondering if perhaps the reason between those was connected. Did her odd height have any relationship with her eyes? Or where they unconnected? He knew for certain they were not normal on a human, but could not place their origin. "Fish cakes and some sort of oyster stew. It's what we got. With all this rationing in Zeltiva, you aren't going to get a selection or anything." Rykanis took a small tentative sip of the stew, which was not bad. He also broke off a piece of a fish cake, and chewed it up well before finally swallowing. It was decent fare, but not as good as what he ate more commonly in Riverfall. Muttering more to himself than to anyone else, Rykanis spoke for a few moments in Tukant, his native tongue. "I suppose that means a bit of wine would be out of the question, instead of the grog these men like to sup..." Recalling that he was not in Riverfall, and so could not easily communicate in his native tongue, he made a mental reminder to himself to continue in common, and to avoid breaking into his more familiar Tukant. He doubted to many of the city spoke it. When next the woman spoke with further questions, it was in a flurry of demands and words. Rykanis had to replay the words again in his mind, conferring with his other half as he had not quite caught her full meaning. He was decent enough in common, but had trouble when someone fired off so many questions in rapid succession. "Where is Riverfall, is that in Cyphrus? Is that where all of those who look like you come from? What race are you exactly? Hmmm ... What cities are closest to Riverfall?" "Sorry, I got a little carried away. I'm Lani ... Stranger." Rykanis smiled back at Lani, and took that moment to shrug and take another bite of one of the fish cakes. He gave her a moment to continue onward, and when she did speak it was to finally answer his question. "I'm from the Spires." "You know where that is?" Letting out a sigh, Rykanis supposed it was his turn to speak. She certainly had quite a few questions. Rykanis could not recall them all, and had to refer back to his other side several times, having him remind him of the questions, in some cases even rephrasing them for him. Rykanis tended to focus more on the immediate, and so often lost track of older questions due to focusing on the fresher ones. "The Spires? It sounds vaguely familiar, though I am uncertain why. I think there are some of Riverfall who visit there for something or other. I myself have never been. Is that where your eyes come from? The Spires? Do all... Spiranians... Or whatever those of the Spires are called. Do they all have eyes such as yours? " In part this was Rykanis trying to find out something, but in part this was his turning her own words back on her. After all he reasoned if he could interrogate her on who and what he was, why could not he do likewise to her? "As for Riverfall... Yes, it is in Cyphrus. You know of Cyphrus then? I doubt many people of these parts know of that region. Most know little beyond the borders of Sylira..." "As for where those who look like me, where they come from, have you then met other men with... Pink... Err... Purple... Violet! Yes, violet skin? Have you met others with skin as mine then?" Rykanis stumbled for a bit, having a bit of trouble with mixing up colors in common. He had numbers down pat, and was not so bad at translating, but sometimes similar sounding colors could mess him up in his speech. Common after all was not his native tongue. Part of his question was also out of actual interest, not just as a delaying tactic. After all, skin as his own, a violet skinned Akalak, was much more uncommon. In fact his skin was such a deep violet it was often mistaken for ebony. Much more common was the various shades of blue skin for a Akalak. So the fact that she said she had seen others similar to himself, seemed somewhat odd.

[Lani Stranger]

As the man spoke, Lani gave him a blank stare. He didn't seem to be looking at her as he spoke, and briefly she wandered if he was rambling to himself. Was he insane? What language was he even speaking? River ... ian? Riverianese? Lani's brain was working too fast for her to pay attention to the small things though. So she asked her questions.

"The Spires? It sounds vaguely familiar, though I am uncertain why. I think there are some of Riverfall who visit there for something or other. I myself have never been. Is that where your eyes come from? The Spires? Do all... Spiranians... Or whatever those of the Spires are called. Do they all have eyes such as yours? " Lani grinned, a little caught off guard. The man had seemed so blunt earlier that she hadn't honestly thought that their conversation would flow smoothly. She shook her head to answer his questions.

"Nah, I just travel a lot. Spent a lot of time there. The Spires belong to the Jamoura, I can't live up to them." Lani chuckled at her inside joke, she aged much faster than the great apes. So she could, quite literally, not live up to them. Lani pulled her hand out of its crossed position, waving it in the air as if to wave her thought away as he continued talking.

"As for Riverfall ... Yes, it is in Cyphrus. You know of Cyphrus then? I doubt many people of these parts know of that region. Most know little beyond the borders of Sylira ... As for where those who look like me, where they come from, have you then met other men with... Pink... Err... Purple... Violet! Yes, violet skin? Have you met others with skin as mine then?"

"I'm pretty sure I come from somewhere in Cyphrus. Maybe Cyphrus is just where all the weird looking people come from ... Although I heard that was Kalea ... " Lani continued her thought after he answered her questions. Her eyes drifted to the table, eyeing the scratches in the wood that had been waxed over. "Well, I travel a lot." Lani shrugged and turned her head down slightly, running her fingers over the glossy wood to feel where the scratches were deepest. Lani eyed him from under her bangs to see if he'd catch her in her lie. She wasn't a terrible liar, one of the blessings of her colorless eyes. For all he know she was actually an experienced traveler. Something that didn't come out of travelling in large groups or under the psychotic eye of your mother. She hadn't actually learned any of it the real way, she had taken a geography class. She wouldn't have remembered mcuh about names and places form her childhood. Although she knew her way around a few cities, she just didn't know which ones, exactly. She hoped he wouldn't call her out on it, she wanted to seem smart in this man's eye. Her boredom with humans had grown and she wanted to keep the foreign man's attention longer if it meant she could learn what he was about. "Yes. No! Actually, sort of." Lani answered him, she had noticed his accent, it was plenty understandable, but he clearly didn't speak the common language natively. "He had very dark blue skin, although it looked almost black, like yours. But he was insanely tall, even for you, and had those weird looking blades as well. They looked a bit different than yours though ... but they look like that ... shape. What ... race are you exactly? Are the women as insanely tall as well? Do a lot of you pop out purple rather than blue?"

PC/NPC Talking -- Common -- Kontinese -- Thoughts

[Rykanis Dakshata]

"Nah, I just travel a lot. Spent a lot of time there. The Spires belong to the Jamoura, I can't live up to them." Rykanis nodded, interested to hear the race who inhabited the Spires, the Jamoura. Oddly the name seemed familiar, but he could not place the race off the top of his head. Surely there was more to that story, of why she had been there, but it did not seem the proper time to pry into that particular detail. Perhaps later. "I'm pretty sure I come from somewhere in Cyphrus. Maybe Cyphrus is just where all the weird looking people come from ... Although I heard that was Kalea ... Well, I travel a lot." Rykanis eyed Lani in return, examing her as she spoke. A few of his triggers were being set off, odd coincidences that his other side pointed out as being a signifier of something or other. Rykanis was no master of interrogation, but his time spent honing his skill in it had taught him various things. For one, she was repeating herself, having said that she traveled a lot twice... Often when one was at a loss for words, or was trying to make things up, they repeated themselves to fill in space as they thought. Along with that her eyes had drifted from him, and without good reason. If she had been eating or drinking and she had focused for a moment on the task of either, perhaps he could have said it was nothing... But with her having nothing else to do but to talk to him, they seemed rather blatant signs she was uncomfortable and did not want to meet his gaze. Along with that when she did glance back it was in a puzzling sort of way, as if she wanted to check and see if he was looking at her, without him noticing that she herself was looking at him. Perhaps it was his time spent as a spy gathering intel making his paranoia act up, but his instincts said it was more, said that he was observing more than her simple words would lead him to believe. However the question was, if she was lying, which aspect of her story was she lying about... That was the hardest thing to narrow down, if it was all lies or only one lie amongst truths. Or perhaps not even a lie by some measures, but simply an exaggeration or simple puffery. At the moment he chose to say nothing, however he would make sure to watch her words and actions in the future. Until then he simply made a short nod, and continued to smile back at the woman. "Yes. No! Actually, sort of. He had very dark blue skin, although it looked almost black, like yours. But he was insanely tall, even for you, and had those weird looking blades as well. They looked a bit different than yours though ... but they look like that ... shape. What ... race are you exactly? Are the women as insanely tall as well? Do a lot of you pop out purple rather than blue?" As Lani made mention of his lakan, Rykanis put one hand down and took out his personal lakan, setting it on the table next to his food. This might be seen as a somewhat hostile action, and perhaps in part it was meant as a way of showing his dominance in regards to his fighting skills. But his words would attempt to make her think it was for another reason, whether it was or not. "It is called a Lakan, all proper Akalak have them. Each is unique to its creator. Even the two I carry are not the same. As for our woman, we do not have any. There is no such thing as a female Akalak." This was technically true, since Akalak's only ever had sons. But he did not make mention of the crossbreed, the Akontak, which was half konti and half Akalak. However technically that was neither Akalak nor Konti, instead something different entirely, something more than either, and so it was not a lie in truth. Lying after all was one thing Rykanis never did, something which often made being a spy that much more difficult. "Though yet again I find you asking questions of me, and expecting me to reveal things, without you revealing the same of yourself first. If you are not of the spires, and not human, then what races are you then? " Rykanis purposely did not answer the question on colors, in part because she had been being slightly rude, and in part because he did not want to reveal everything when she did not bother to tell him much of anything in return. And he still had a niggling feeling that she was being untrue about something. For this he would keep her eyes, not flinching or glancing away with fear, instead simply confidently holding her gaze, a small smile still on his face despite the slight hostility to his words.

[Lani Stranger]

As Rykanis leaned forward, resting his blade on the table, Lani unconsciously leaned back. She let her eyes glance around the room once, uncertain about taking weapons out in such an establishment. "It is called a Lakan, all proper Akalak have them. Each is unique to its creator. Even the two I carry are not the same. As for our woman, we do not have any. There is no such thing as a female Akalak." Lani's eyes narrowed. No way. She thought, looking at the man. But before Lani spoke up, she remembered that the Konti were completely female. HEr mother had told her that any race could impregnate a Konti and produce a Konti daughter. It was very possible that the Akalak had a similar way. However Lani preferred not to dwell on that subject. The topic of reproducing made her as squeamish as blood. Lani let the subject go, relaxing her eyes and opting not to question Rykanis on it. "Though yet again I find you asking questions of me, and expecting me to reveal things, without you revealing the same of yourself first. If you are not of the Spires, and not human, then what races are you then? "

"Are you searching for some type of answer here? Is there something you need or are investigating?" Leni let out a breathy chuckle, arching one eyebrow at the man as she leaning back in to rest her elbows on the table again. "I thought we were just having a friendly conversation. Is your curiosity that aggressive?' Lani was a bit taken aback by his bluntness, she was thrown back into thinking him colder. She couldn't decide whether he was just friendly or if he was searching for something ... For what? Her life was that interesting, nor was it remarkable. "Okay, Rykanis. If you need me to reveal something, I can't answer your question truthfully, sorry." Lani lightly mocked his serious tone. She wanted to throw question after question at the Akalak, but she decided not to. If he didn't want to answer he questions, which he was remarkably good at avoiding, then she wouldn't force him too. She would want answers eventually, but Lani didn't think this would be the last time she ran into the tall man. So tonight she would answer his questions.

"I can tell you that I've never seen anyone like me. There has got to be someone out there though. So if you ever find anyone, someone like me, let me know." Lani looked at the man, his blue eyes piercing the black of hers. She wanted to ask why he cared. Why was he so intent on 'revealing' information. She wasn't part of some big conspiracy or in anything special or important. But Lani remembered that she had been rather curious in his race, where he came from, and the such. Though he had merely given her vague answers or simply didn't answer. His curiosity was validated in her mind, so she wasn't going to pester him. But he didn't seem to want to answer hers. "Okay, now why are you so against 'revealing information'? It's just a casual conversation, not an interrogation."

Lani was itching to ask him questions. His answers became so much more important to her than they should have been. Rykanis gave off a secretive feel that drew Lani's curiosity in like a horse to hay. Instead she gave him a simple question to answer, one that she would definitely notice should he want to avoid it.

PC/NPC Talking -- Common -- Kontinese -- Thoughts

[Rykanis Dakshata]

Rykanis noted how Lani narrowed her eyes at his words, as he made mention of the fact that his race had no females. Rykanis expected for a moment for her to exclaim that he was making things up, only for her to seem to decide better. This was either because she had decided to not say anything, and thought he was lying, or for some other reason or fact she had decided he might be telling the truth. Yet again he found himself unable to tell which of the logical reasons for her actions was the true one. Her next statement however brought to mind the fact that he had perhaps overplayed his hand, or had perhaps been a bit to assertive in his questioning. Rykanis wanted a give and take to occur, and wanted to keep it balanced, but clearly she did not see a conversation as such. He did find it somewhat ironic that she would claim him to have been interrogating her, while she had much more clearly and bluntly been questioning and interrogating him for most of the conversation. This brought a small flicker of smile to his lips, even past the small smile across his lips. For a moment or two it was stepped up to a full grin, but then fell back to the base smile. "Are you searching for some type of answer here? Is there something you need or are investigating? I thought we were just having a friendly conversation. Is your curiosity that aggressive? Okay, Rykanis. If you need me to reveal something, I can't answer your question truthfully, sorry." At this point Rykanis job became all the more difficult. He would not lie, could not lie. But nor could he be totally honest, or else she likely would not want to continue onward. Along with that, since the fact that he was somewhat obsessed with secrets and winnowing them out was in itself a secret, divulging this fact to make things clear would in and of itself be a problem. However her admittal that she could not truthfully answer his question simply further puzzled him. "I am not trying to learn anything in particular. But is not the quest for knowledge a worthy thing? Perhaps you find some information worth more than others, but I find learning knowledge in and of itself is a worthy quest to undertake. We are having a friendly conversation, but still the conversation is based on the concept of the give and take. Balance is important in conversation, just as it is in all of life. I would not want to put myself at a disadvantage, not so early in our meeting and learning of one another. Not if we wish to continue this connection, as we will undoubtedly do should we find ourselves both continuing to live in the same city." As Lani continued on, her words puzzled him more than they cleared things up. This was not a satisfying outcome for Rykanis. Of course it was somewhat odd, to find someone who knew so little of themselves and their own past. Either she was lying, or she truly did not know. "I can tell you that I've never seen anyone like me. There has got to be someone out there though. So if you ever find anyone, someone like me, let me know. Okay, now why are you so against 'revealing information'? It's just a casual conversation, not an interrogation." Still looking Lani back in the eyes casually, his hand still rested on the hilt of his lakan. Without looking he once more picked it up, and carefully slotted it back into its scabbard, continuing to gaze at Lani. "You've never met anyone like yourself? Do you not know your parents, are they not like you? Surely you have met someone with the qualities you yourself have, which differentiate yourself from a common human." Taking a moment to think, Rykanis took another bite of his food, his eyes focusing for a few moments on it as he took a bite of fish cake and a spoonful of stew. After carefully chewing and swallowing it, he continued on speaking to the woman. "As for why I am against revealing things... Well first I would point out that revealing why someone does not want to reveal something, is in and of itself a revelation. Would it not then hinder my need to keep said fact hidden, if I needed to keep it hidden to start with? It therefore seems silly to me to ask such a question. Either they will answer it, and then therefore actually had no need to keep it hidden, or they will not answer it, for the same reason they did not reveal it before you pointed it out. Only now that you've pointed it out the other person now knows you know that they have failed to do so." "Regardless... I suppose the answer can be best answered by a a question. What do you know of the Akalak, or of Riverfall? Surely not much, if you have never been, and know so little of my race. The Akalak race is a race of warriors, down to the last... "Man." From the time we can walk we are taught to defend ourselves. From the time we can hold a blade in our hand, we are taught combat and to fight. From the time that we can think and learn, we are trained in tactics and strategy and fighting. We are not considered men unless we have already proven ourselves in live combat. We are a race bred for battle and fighting. Do you not think then, that such a race, a child of such a race, would not someday come to find everything a battle? Even such a simple conversation as this? Would they not plan and make strategy and look for the upper hand in everything they do? Would they not be unwilling to show weakness, to give in, or to concede defeat? Would they not?"

[Ssezzkero]

LANI
+2 Observation, +1 Investigation, +1 Intimidation, +2 Brawling, +1 Unarmed Combat, +1 Medicine, +2 Socialization, +1 Persuasion, Race: Akalak, Medicine: How to check for a pulse, Unarmed Combat: How to throw a punch, Location: Riverfall, Geography: Cyphrus, Weapon: Lakan

RYKANIS
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