[Sanctuary] Something Familiar [Kavala]

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

31st Spring, 511 A.V. Sama'el had taken care of the business that brought him to Riverfall for the most part; the message was delivered to the appropriate people in the city of the blue men. He had merely to wait to see if there was some return message that required him to play courier. The Watch was the most reliable postal service in Cyphrus. But while he was offered a place to sleep in the meantime, he could not say that he was completely comfortable there. It felt like a city full of Ankals and would-be Ankals, everyone living with a fierce competitive spirit roiling around just beneath the surface. Now Sama'el had dreams of becoming an Ankal someday. In fact, he was working diligently toward that aim. But his dream of leadership was not the sort of dream that relied upon putting other people down, tearing up other people's dreams. Though the ride to Riverfall from across the region had been grueling, Dohaina was more than happy to walk about with her bonded. The striking golden mare was never happier than with him, and likewise for the Drykas. They quickly found themselves outside Riverfall, where the Sea of Grass was more present and freedom more easily within reach. Walls were almost anathema to the children of the wind and the earth. Theirs was a city they could pick up and move, and did every season. Vanator, an old hunting companion, had mentioned relatives in Riverfall, but the details had escaped his young mind since. They had moved away from Riverfall and so thoughts of going there had faded too until this courier assignment had come up at just the right time when his happiness was dashed on the rocks of circumstance. Dohaina whickered at him, remonstrance against moping. He sat up straighter in the yvas and looked around. There was a building with pastures and a few outbuildings. "Well, this looks promising, doesn't it?" he asked. Dohaina made a noise of agreement and began trotting over without even a nudge from his knees. Sama'el rode like a natural. He had lived in the saddle for the two years following his escape from slavery in Sunberth, and now he was training young Drykas to ride as well, a high honor among the horse people. The two of them moved as one up to the happy horse place, casing the joint, as it were. "Hullo!" he called in Common. He hoped they didn't only speak blue man talk.

[Kavala]

With her child slung neatly against her stomach in his sling, Kavala walked quietly across the yard a new yvas on her shoulder. It was going to take some doing to get Vahn to accept it as a tool rather than as a binding, but she'd see what she could do to get the job done. First though, she was going to use it on Silk and break it in a little so the leather was softer, easier on the kelvic. The big mixed blooded palomino stallion wouldn't mind new. Whereas Vahn noticed everything. In some ways, teaching Silk -the mixed blood - was a lot easier than teaching the kelvic stallion who guarded her herds. Silk understood the nature of what she wanted, eager to please. Vahn trusted, but questioned, because his mind was bright with ideas and possibilities though for all that, he wasn't so good with change. It made them both suited to different things, but it gave none of them an advantage, that much was for sure.

On that bright morning, the horse gate stood wide open. Kavala normally kept it closed, but she was still recovering from Tasival's birth and in that moment with a stallion standing in the arena awaiting lessons, walking to close the gate didn't seem worth the effort.

Kavala ducked under the rails of the arena, minding the child against her slim form, and walked up to the palomino stallion Silk. She slung the yvas over his back and tightened it down, checking for his comfort. It had a long blanket that draped his flanks and part of his back. Once in place, Kavala swung up on the stallion's back and sat still letting him fidget for a moment then settle. Then, she quietly asked him for a walk keeping one arm gently on the burden nestled across her breast and stomach. The child, for all his dark skin, still had plenty of Drykas blood in him - enough to keep him quiet while his mother schooled her horses.

It was in that sedate walk that she noticed the newcommer at the gate and greeted him asking the stallion for a halt with just a gentle deepening of her seat. He didn't respond immediately, but took two more steps before he halted and began pawing at the ground once more. Young, it was obvious the stallion was on his perhaps his first year of being ridden, perhaps less than a season by the amount of caution he took. He was calm but clearly excited to be working, the konti on his back careful but trusting him enough to bring her newborn with her during training.

"Fair winds and tall grasses to you." She said, then noted his attire and strider, then switched to absolutely fluent pavi. "You look a long way from home. Can we help you with something? A rest for your horse perhaps? We have some rather large box stalls and the hay is still sweet even though the spring grasses haven't been cut yet." She added.

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

Sama'el grinned when the greeting turned Drykas, and responded with a more formal gesture of greeting and more heartfelt words: "May Zulrav urge you along your path and Semele bear up under your feet." The formalities happily carried out, he smiled wider. After shedding so much sweat, blood, and tears getting back to his people in Endrykas, it was good to see that even if he ventured away from the roving city, he might still find people of his people. That was a comforting thought, and even Dohaina seemed to sense that things here would be more familiar than among the blue men, who smelled strange to her. "It is good to hear the mother tongue," he said, "and I suppose my golden lady would prefer to sleep here than where they have us stabled in the city. I'm Sama'el of the Sapphire Clan. My friend Vanator told me about this place and I had to see it for myself while Watch business keeps me in Riverfall. Well met, lady."

[Kavala]

Kavala smiled then wrinkled her nose. "Vanator's my brother. Older. I'm Kavala. Akela, his other konti sister is here too. Him and his new wife visited a while back. I don't suppose she's gotten eaten by a glassbeak yet has she? I kept hoping but the Akalak keep the grasslands around here fairly safe." Kavala said with a grin in perfect Pavi. She seemed somewhat serious though her tone was lighthearted. "She'll run him in circles and he'll never get any decisions made without her trying to be an Ankal and shaming our Pavilion." Kavala said thoughtfully, this time with more seriousness. "I suppose I shouldn't complain though. I heard it was a match made by the families and not their choice." She said wistfully and then smiled.

"Feel free to look around. What brings you to Riverfall on Watch business? Anything good? Are you here to rescue all of us Nakivaks that are here on contract rather than by our own free will?" It was a joke, of course, one perhaps poorly timed, but Kavala's sense of humor had increased since Tasi's birth. Speaking of which, a noise had her head tilting and she gave Sam a quick gesture and trotted off towards the shade. Moments later she returned with a baby in a sling slung against her ribs. It was the way most Drykas carried their newborns for it left their hands free and the child held high enough to ride with. "Sorry, hes fussy today.'" Kavala said gently. She shifted her weight and then freed a breast from the sleeveless button up tunic she wore to let the child nurse. "I'm one of the Akalak's bondswoman. Vanator doesn't know. He thinks I am here by choice because stationary life is better than travel or some such nonsense. And while that might not be true, I do enjoy enormously having the sea out of my back door." She added, smiling.

Then she offered Sama'el a chair and stoked up the fire on the Veranda. Then she took her own seat so Tasi would have a chance to really have a meal without his mother dragging him over half hte facility.

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

The young Watchman slipped deftly out of his yvas to the ground while they were speaking and Dohaina, well-trained, found a likely spot to crop the grass. Not knowing how long he would stay, he didn't move to remove her tack, but he had made sure it was comfortably applied when he had prepared her to ride earlier. "Ahh, he's lucky to have such beautiful sisters," he said. It was disarmingly honest rather than cheesy, appreciative rather than predatory. Perhaps if things weren't already arranged for Kavala and Akela, one or both might make a pretty bride. Of course, they would only have daughters, but a second wife could bear sons... "Van and I have hunted together several times, but I've not met Kashik many times. She does seem strong-willed. Perhaps you should give him a few tips on gentling a mare?" His smile was amused, but slightly tense. Of course he respected women -- how could he not -- but it was generally accepted among their people that a pavilion should have one head. An Ankal was generally wise to listen to his wives, but he should remain Ankal. It could be a delicate balance. "I came bearing messages from Endrykas, but I'm only a courier so I don't know what they contained. When I left, we were not mobilizing for war against anyone, so I imagine that it needn't be cause for alarm." But his equanimity waved a bit, not entirely sure how much of her question was in jest. "I don't suppose they could keep you here against your will if you have a healthy Strider in your stables. Even on a broken down old nag, a Drykas woman should be able to outrun an Akalak..." He smiled and followed her toward the shade, then waited patiently while she retrieved her little blue baby. The breastfeeding didn't bother him at all. He had never seen women at it in Sunberth or Syliras, but it was a natural thing and Drykas women didn't see the need to hide something that wasn't shameful. "Ahh, he's beautiful," he said, observing her little infant. "Congratulations. This means you will be well-treated here, doesn't it? It seems like you have a lot. A business, a view of the sea..." He hoped he was not crossing some line of propriety or an emotional boundary. Sometimes he tripped over them unwittingly and was then bewildered by the effects.

[Kavala]

Kavala was more at ease among the Drykas than one might suspect. She'd grown up trusting the Watch and relying on them to keep pavilions safe. Truthfully, she would have told Sama'el her deepest secrets and expected him to take them to his death, for that was how a good Drykas was raised.

But his question was a mix of criticism and curiosity. She knew he didn't understand Riverfall for she hadn't either when she first came. Her smile was uneasy, only for a moment, then she glanced around and met his gaze. Her flare for the dramatic and her ability to do a little storytelling came into play as she thoughtfully answered him.

She started with silence, not to add to the atmosphere, but to paint the canvas white so that her words would be fresh like wet paint between them. "Take a nasty old calculating glassbeaks personality and stuff it into a man. Make him hungry, vengeful, and tenacious. Make him driven and overly thrilled with the hunt. Have him stamp out anything within him that used to be good or bright and instead want nothing more than destruction. The Akalak have those among them who are like this. No horse could outrun them for long for they'd keep coming. Always. You could never dismount to sleep. You could never take the time to bathe. They'd just keep coming. No. The Cerulean keep a good Drykas woman here." Kavala said softly, her voice intense.

Sama'el couldn't see much anyhow. While they were open and affectionate about their children, they were also discrete. Tasi's sling hid most of what she was doing, even though it was obvious that she was feeding him. Kavala smiled, and moved on. "I'm glad the Drykas communicate with the Akalak and are on good terms. This way they will never come to conflict, I think, for inherently both are good people." Kavala said looking thoughtful. Her eyes gazed at Sama'el's horse admiringly and she nodded towards the mount. "Nice Strider. They always pick well." She added, then sat back in her chair, surveying her domain.

"Gilded cages are still cages. It will feel a lot less like one when it is paid off. I use the money I earn here to pay a little at a time for each thing I acquire. Soon I will have worked off a significant debt and it will be mine in truth. But yes, they treat women very well here for all that most of us aren't free. I don't really blame them though. If your race was on the verge of extinction, you'd be taking drastic measures as well." She smiled, her grin sociable. "Vanator should have sold off Kashik to the Akalak. He'd get a lot less grief. If you have any sisters, feel free to unload them here if you cannot marry them off decently. They'll fetch a better price here than on the Grass." She added then uncorked a bottle of wine and poured him a glass.

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

There was a comfort to the more permanent furniture of stationary places, and so he was making himself quite comfortable in a chair, even if some of their conversation is not what one would call pretty. He admired the sea, he admired the Sanctuary, and he found he admired the woman behind it all, this sister of his hunt companion. He just nodded at her description of certain, less likable Akalaks, but the wheels of his mind started turning then. Sama'el was not a stupid young man. Naive at times, perhaps, but not stupid. "I think both the Akalak and the Drykas nations are strong, and it were better we worked together to survive the harshness of the Sea of Grass than fight each other without need." His gaze traveled over to his golden mare and his face softened with affection and love. "She came to me out of the teeth of a Cyphrus storm. Some people are marked by Zulrav... She is my mark. I will honor the god of storms forever for His gift. And sooner rather than later, I'm hoping to breed her. I'd like to have a bit of a herd when I raise my pavilion. "I haven't any sisters anymore," he said quietly. His tragedy was far enough away for a bit of perspective. It still hurt, of course. Sometimes it hurt like a knife in the guts. "But I take your point." There was a long pause after he thanked her for the wine, taking it in his hand, clean thanks to a bath. He glanced from wine to woman, raising it as if he were about to make a toast to her health. "Do you wish to return to Endrykas?" he asked quietly.

[Kavala]

Kavala met Sama'el's eyes, her pale blue gaze almost making her look blind as she studied him intently. A wall of silence seemed to surround them for a moment before she took a breath and laughed. It was a pure sound, filled with joy that came straight from the heart. It was the kind of laugh one would use to laugh at their own foolishness as if they found themselves endlessly amusing.

"I've been back twice when I've known the city was close. Where do you think all my good horseflesh came from. They certainly aren't Riverfall animals." She said with a smile. "The Akalak don't even bat an eyelash. That's probably because I ride back here post haste afraid to leave what I've worked so hard to build. But you, Sama'el, are my new hero just for asking me that question. My brother visited and never asked. The father of my child never once asked either. Thank you for that. Thank you very much. You never mentioned a Pavilion, even though we are of the same Clan. Just for asking, I'd bring you into the Denusk as a brother if I still dwelled on the grass. An Ankal's daughter can adopt brothers where she will, especially if her own male siblings are thick skulled and dim witted." She said, knowing there was a good reason for Sama'el not mentioning a pavilion. Pavilions ceased to exist all the time. Wildfires. Glassbeaks. Storms. He could be the last of his bloodline or from a totally unknown one and just recently taken into the clan.

"As is. You are welcome here anytime and there'll be a place for your strider and a pillow to rest your head on out of the weather." It was a common gesture among Drykas, normally issued with the words 'place in my pavilion' though Kavala had none other than the small two-room one her mother owned which came to her and Akela at Ay'vala's death.

Kavala gestured to the upper floor of the clinic, the one with the full length balcony that overlooked the sea on the side of the building Sama'el couldn't see. "The whole upper floor is decked out like a pavilion. Except for the mural an Akvatari painted on the wall of under the sea, its exactly like home. We all sleep together Drykas style here, though a few of the hired hands have their own quarters because one has family with him and the other likes privacy. Stairways inside my office and outside alongside the veranda. Feel free to use it anytime. I mean that." Privacy was something a Drykas never had and never missed. They lived to fast and died too young to ever actually keep secrets from one another.

"But no. I'm happy here. I'm busy developing a new breed of horse for the Akalak have nothing decent here. Part Strider, part Nightwalker, all warhorse with the brains of a bloodbane. I had six bloodbane mares imported from Ravok that were dropouts of their own breeding program for being too passive. But they are smart mares nonetheless. Their foals next year I have high hopes for. And I have a kelvic stallion who's a big fella. I found him in Endrykas fringing the herds but not really part of one. Here he has his own and gets to breed because he has an incredible conformation. If he can figure out how to get the bloodbanes in foal without them killing him, then I can crossbreed them with striders and mixed breed nightwalkers we may make something yet. I'm going for size, athleticism, conformation, and brains. It will take a few generations to see if I've gotten it right." Kavala mused then quieted down to pour herself more wine. Tasi, sleeping comfortably against her ribs, was quiet after his meal. Kavala took the time to readjust things beneath the sling and settle the infant more comfortably on his sleep.

[Sama'el Sunsinger]

He held her gaze as best he could, though Konti blue eyes tended to make him bashful where he ought to be bold. With her laughter, there came a momentary doubt, but it was soon allayed; she was not laughing at him. He smiled, too, then laughed a bit himself. Those things were contagious for him. "I'm certainly thick-skulled enough to pass for Vanator sometimes," he said with a wink. He respected Vanator immensely, but he remembered from the dim, dark past what it was like to have siblings, the teasing, the insults that meant deep and abiding love. "And I would be honored to accept, except that I feel like the reason I was spared the fate of my family was to speak the name again when the pavilion exists again... Thank you. I might just... The Akalaks are being hospitable, but the walls... they encroach upon my sleep." His eyes lit up at her plans for her herd, and he nodded excitedly at points. His own plans remained but plans for the time being, but talking to her quickened the desire to sow the seeds that would eventually harvest his dreams. He even laughed at the mention of a Kelvic stallion. "That should breed some intelligence into them there," he agreed. "I'm good with horses... I worked in the stable of a man's house in Sunberth. Worked for the Windmounts in Syliras for a while. The care and feeding I can handle, but soon I will need a herd. Hopefully I'll have my own little ones running around before long, and they'll need Striders. I've got my eyes open for a stallion to breed with Dohaina, but pregnancy will keep her from carrying me on circuit. My Windrunner just won't be as fast in Cyphrus as he seems everywhere else. But he's fine stock. I might start putting him out to stud. Earn some resources to put into horses. I'll need Seme for my eventual pavilion, but... The possibilities are endless." He grinned at her, sharing in her excitement. "I can see why you don't necessarily want to leave. It might not be what you wanted, but you have a lot. A view, a son, horses. You still see your pavilion, you are free to travel. And you have a city full of blue men who would kill to protect you. Almost as fearsome as the Drykas horde." He laughed. "But what will you call your Akalak steeds?"

[Kavala]

Kavala smiled at Sama'el. It wasn't hard to like him though she didn't immediately take to all the people she met. Kavala truthfully disliked human males a lot, a turn of personality from her capture and enslavement almost a full year ago. They could be crude, bestial, and had such short lives their plans never seemed to her to be long-lived. But Sama'el was Drykas through and through and that meant a lot. Even his superstition about speaking his pavilion name before it existed had her nodding in approval. Yes. He'd be suitable if he survived circuit and was able to follow his dreams. That was the problem with making friends among the Drykas, even the strong ones. Things happened. Life was short. Sama'el was young, but for his own people he was in his prime and statistically had little time left.

"You have very noble plans. If I were more of a seer I'd look to see if things will come the way you want them too. But I am blind to people's fates. You do, however, give me a good feeling. You don't seem the type to quit until you have what you want." She said, smiling.

The Sea of Grass was hard on people. But Sama'el had plans for the future. It would give him a vital edge for his survival. If he held onto his dreams hard enough he'd achieve them with little fuss. Completely and utterly. That was how the world worked. Dream realistically, hold that dream, and don't deviate. Kavala lived her life that way, completely, regardless of the distractions.

"I am blessed. Yes. Rak'keli takes good care of me and I thank her among others daily. When you give of yourself, you often get back in tenfold." Kavala said softly, reaching down to touch her ankle where her gnosis marks were.

"I have no idea about what I'd call them, truthfully. I thought about calling them Denusks, but it seems somehow not to fit since I feel so ... astranged. Konti don't fit in well on the Sea of Grass no matter how much we want too. We belong to the Sea itself too much to ever be completely comfortable. I never realized it until I was here. I thought about calling them Wardens, for I want them to be a steed you can purchase to keep someone safe. I won't breed them unless they are absolutely loyal and protective of their riders. But so far nothing really fits. Even naming them after my mother seems somehow too associated with the Denusk curse for she died of it. No. They need something new, untouched, and refreshing as a name. Do you have any suggestions?" Kavala asked.