2nd of Winter, 517 AV.
breakFirst day on the paradise. It truly was a wonderous sight, much better than what Captain James had told him last fall. Even a charlattan like Öcsi admited the Captain had not lied about anything; in fact, he had fallen short. The beaches were not white; they were ivory. The waters were not blue; they were crystaline. The palms were not beautiful; they were marvellous. Not even his wildest dreams would have managed to imagine this amount of beauty. Öcsi thought of it as condensed beauty, in truth. A placid calm had set upon him as he wandered down the beach, shoes on his backpack while he walked over the rumbling waters below, watching it coming and going only to return again. He knew right there that he had made the right choice.
breakIt must've been ten minutes since he began his stroll, and the human had already grown bored. Unloading the Captain James' ship had tired him more than he would've liked, especially since the storyteller was not used to heavy work. He was barely used to work at all. Unloading the ship had been part of the deal he made with the Captain, whom had first approached Öcsi with what he had called 'the opportunity of a lifetime'. Explore distant lands, settle in paradise and drink coconut milk for the rest of one's life. Only a fool would not be tempted to venture into Syka. All he wanted in exchange of the transport was help loading and unloading the ship of its various goods, which was a good deal. After the unloading had finished, the Captain had pointed him towards the commons, where they were to meet whenever Öcsi finished his immersion.
breakWalking back to the settlement didn't take much; Öcsi hadn't advanced all that much. In fact, he had barely advanced at all. His feet often moved with a slowness comparable to that of a turtle. It's not that he was slow; there was just nowhere to go. It wasn't some curse that had befallen him once he arrived into the tropical climate; it was a sloth that had been holding onto him since his youth. As he walked, he waved his hands at the settlers, some of whom greeted him back with a wave of their own, ignored him or just gave them one of their apathetic stares. Whatever their response, it didn't bother him that much all the same. He did stop a few of them to ask them for the commons, which he found just as the sun stood highest on the sky.
breakIt was hard to forget where it was; it had been built on trees. Trees! It was impressive as a sight, but even more so once Öcsi began climbing the wide stairwell. As the height grew, so did the breeze that penetrated his sweat-soaked shirt, which was most welcome. The commons were busy; the sound of music, chatter and laughter was easily recognized. It was somewhat contagious, in truth, for even Öcsi, who was used to taverns and inns, felt a bit upbeat. Just as he reached the deck, someone patted him on the shoulder.
break“There you are!” said Captain James, which seemed far happier here in Syka than at sea. “Come on, I'll introduce you to Mathias.”
breakÖcsi, with a light smile, nodded and followed the Captain, slithering through the busy commons. Without having ever met Mathias, he knew who he was; a seasoned male with white hairs, a jolly attitude and, of course, accosted by various hands that demanded handshakes. He was clearly the leader, and well loved by his people. As suspected, it was his table Captain James took them to.
break“Mathias, this here is Öcsi, the man I told you about,” said the Captain, almost proud of himself for bringing Öcsi.
break“It is an honor to meet you, sir,” said Öcsi, as he extended his hand for a firm handshake. “Captain James speaks very highly of you.”
break“Captain James speaks highly of everyone, my friend,” said Mathias with a laugh, inviting them both to sit down. “Come, join me for a drink. How are you liking Syka so far?”
break“It is truly wonderful, sir,” replied Öcsi with honesty. “I had yet to witness such amount of beauty in the world.”
break“You and me both, my friend. This place truly is a gem.” Mathias uncorked a bottle that had been waiting on their table, and poured the smelly rum onto the three glasses. “And we've barely scratched the surface.”
break“Come on, you old fool,” intervened Captain James with a scoff. “Stop scratching the surface and sit on your ass for a while.” He now turned to Öcsi. “It's always the same. He says he wants to retire and catch his breath but he's always doing this and that.”
break“Bah! Don't listen to him; he's just waiting for a chance to lay down and get sunburnt again. Aren't you Captain?”
break“Please don't mind him,” interrupted the Captain, snickering. “Or else he'll bore you to death with his tales.”
break“Actually,” said Öcsi. “I wouldn't mind hearing about how you managed to discover Syka. I've tried to dig it out of the Captain here but he's always changing the subject.”
break“Oh, my friend. That's a rather long and, frankly, boring tale we'll leave for another day. However, I've heard you had some interesting tales to tell. Tell me, did you really date a Wailer?”
breakÖcsi nodded. It wasn't true, of course, but it was a good tale nonetheless. “Three years of dating. Then one day I'm taking a stroll at night and I hear this screaming, so I go up this alley and see some guy screaming at my woman. And you know what I said? I said 'Hey, that's my woman you're screaming into, you son of a bitch!”
breakThe three of them laughed.
break“I will say this, though; wailer or no wailer, from all the women I've dated, she's the one that screamed the least.”
breakThey laughed again.
breakFirst day on the paradise. It truly was a wonderous sight, much better than what Captain James had told him last fall. Even a charlattan like Öcsi admited the Captain had not lied about anything; in fact, he had fallen short. The beaches were not white; they were ivory. The waters were not blue; they were crystaline. The palms were not beautiful; they were marvellous. Not even his wildest dreams would have managed to imagine this amount of beauty. Öcsi thought of it as condensed beauty, in truth. A placid calm had set upon him as he wandered down the beach, shoes on his backpack while he walked over the rumbling waters below, watching it coming and going only to return again. He knew right there that he had made the right choice.
breakIt must've been ten minutes since he began his stroll, and the human had already grown bored. Unloading the Captain James' ship had tired him more than he would've liked, especially since the storyteller was not used to heavy work. He was barely used to work at all. Unloading the ship had been part of the deal he made with the Captain, whom had first approached Öcsi with what he had called 'the opportunity of a lifetime'. Explore distant lands, settle in paradise and drink coconut milk for the rest of one's life. Only a fool would not be tempted to venture into Syka. All he wanted in exchange of the transport was help loading and unloading the ship of its various goods, which was a good deal. After the unloading had finished, the Captain had pointed him towards the commons, where they were to meet whenever Öcsi finished his immersion.
breakWalking back to the settlement didn't take much; Öcsi hadn't advanced all that much. In fact, he had barely advanced at all. His feet often moved with a slowness comparable to that of a turtle. It's not that he was slow; there was just nowhere to go. It wasn't some curse that had befallen him once he arrived into the tropical climate; it was a sloth that had been holding onto him since his youth. As he walked, he waved his hands at the settlers, some of whom greeted him back with a wave of their own, ignored him or just gave them one of their apathetic stares. Whatever their response, it didn't bother him that much all the same. He did stop a few of them to ask them for the commons, which he found just as the sun stood highest on the sky.
breakIt was hard to forget where it was; it had been built on trees. Trees! It was impressive as a sight, but even more so once Öcsi began climbing the wide stairwell. As the height grew, so did the breeze that penetrated his sweat-soaked shirt, which was most welcome. The commons were busy; the sound of music, chatter and laughter was easily recognized. It was somewhat contagious, in truth, for even Öcsi, who was used to taverns and inns, felt a bit upbeat. Just as he reached the deck, someone patted him on the shoulder.
break“There you are!” said Captain James, which seemed far happier here in Syka than at sea. “Come on, I'll introduce you to Mathias.”
breakÖcsi, with a light smile, nodded and followed the Captain, slithering through the busy commons. Without having ever met Mathias, he knew who he was; a seasoned male with white hairs, a jolly attitude and, of course, accosted by various hands that demanded handshakes. He was clearly the leader, and well loved by his people. As suspected, it was his table Captain James took them to.
break“Mathias, this here is Öcsi, the man I told you about,” said the Captain, almost proud of himself for bringing Öcsi.
break“It is an honor to meet you, sir,” said Öcsi, as he extended his hand for a firm handshake. “Captain James speaks very highly of you.”
break“Captain James speaks highly of everyone, my friend,” said Mathias with a laugh, inviting them both to sit down. “Come, join me for a drink. How are you liking Syka so far?”
break“It is truly wonderful, sir,” replied Öcsi with honesty. “I had yet to witness such amount of beauty in the world.”
break“You and me both, my friend. This place truly is a gem.” Mathias uncorked a bottle that had been waiting on their table, and poured the smelly rum onto the three glasses. “And we've barely scratched the surface.”
break“Come on, you old fool,” intervened Captain James with a scoff. “Stop scratching the surface and sit on your ass for a while.” He now turned to Öcsi. “It's always the same. He says he wants to retire and catch his breath but he's always doing this and that.”
break“Bah! Don't listen to him; he's just waiting for a chance to lay down and get sunburnt again. Aren't you Captain?”
break“Please don't mind him,” interrupted the Captain, snickering. “Or else he'll bore you to death with his tales.”
break“Actually,” said Öcsi. “I wouldn't mind hearing about how you managed to discover Syka. I've tried to dig it out of the Captain here but he's always changing the subject.”
break“Oh, my friend. That's a rather long and, frankly, boring tale we'll leave for another day. However, I've heard you had some interesting tales to tell. Tell me, did you really date a Wailer?”
breakÖcsi nodded. It wasn't true, of course, but it was a good tale nonetheless. “Three years of dating. Then one day I'm taking a stroll at night and I hear this screaming, so I go up this alley and see some guy screaming at my woman. And you know what I said? I said 'Hey, that's my woman you're screaming into, you son of a bitch!”
breakThe three of them laughed.
break“I will say this, though; wailer or no wailer, from all the women I've dated, she's the one that screamed the least.”
breakThey laughed again.
