[Silver Lake] A Place to Rest (Open)

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

Season of Spring, Day 24, 511 AV

A little ways from the shore of Silver Lake Quelen was in the water singing. Her clear voice was muffled outside of the as she sang up and down scales of notes slowly. It was a simple warm up, but something that was good to go over and wouldn't take away from the focus of what she was doing.

In the water Quelen was floating next to a small coral reef she had found, her hands outstretched towards it as she shaped the coral. It was a slow process, asking the coral to move and guiding it into the shape she needed, but she wasn't trying for much. Just a little place for her to rest and hold her thinks while she stayed on Mura.

Having gone through all the basic scales she started over again, this time moving up and down the notes quicker. If only the quickening of her singing would speed the coral along as well! She wanted to go and learn more of the Konti and their city, but she couldn't neglect to take care of herself unfortunately.

Voice sliding up and down the notes Quelen watched as the coral slowly grew and shifted to form the small shelter she desired.

[Cilaes]

Cilaes walked along one of the beautiful bridges of Mura, squinting in the spring sunlight. The man had shadowy bags beneath his eyes, as though he hadn't slept much the night before. This was entirely true. In fact, Cilaes hadn't slept at all the night before, he never did. The Ethaefal went to bed as the sun rose, preferring to spend the night awake and in the company of the moon. This erratic sleeping schedule meant he usually slept through the better part of the day, coming into Mura to see the Konti in the afternoon. It wasn't exactly an active social life, but it suited him. He could speak with the women of the isle until they grew tired and then spend the rest of his nights staring at the stars in peace. It's probably best this way anyway Cilaes thought, he had noticed that if he spent too much time with the Konti his depression began to weigh on them. They were too sensitive to emotions and he could do nothing to bury his feelings about being trapped on the mortal earth once again. So he lived in his tent away from the busy parts of the city, never spent too long socializing and slept until noon most days. But Cilaes couldn't sleep today. His baggy eyes had been earned in a restless morning of dreaming. He couldn't remember the dreams, he rarely did, but they had been persistent, and the man had given up on sleep for now. It's not all bad. At least it is a beautiful day to be sleepless, even if it is daytime... It was a glorious Spring day. Syna's light glistened on the waters of Silver Lake, dancing excitedly in the ripples made by passing swan boats. Trees were blooming on the shore, and in some places the pastel petals floated serenely on the water. CIlaes finished crossing the bridge was walking beneath the blooming trees. The man had rolled back the sleeves of his white shirt in the heat, and the tattoo sleeve on his left arm was visible. He noticed one bloom that hadn't quite opened yet, and to amuse himself, touched it. As his fingers brushed the soft pink petals the flower began to move. The bud peeled back, untwisting as it went. Slowly each petal unfurled and stretch backward to reveal a bright red center. As Cilaes withdrew his hand the wrinkles of the freshly opened flower smoothed themselves, and the pollen covered stamen shook gently in the wind.

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

Her little alcove in the coral was coming along nicely, and Quelen had moved on from singing scales to singing up and down major chords. These went much quicker than the scales, and reflected her internal restlessness. There was so much of Mura she hadn't seen yet!

After going through the major chords she started singing up and down minor chords, but even when she was done with those her work was still not done. With a sigh she lowered her hand. She would take a break, and come back and finish soon. It's not like there was a rush.

A few strong kicks propelled her back up to the edge of the water, and she emerged with a bit of a splash. As she settled back into the water her eyes fell upon a man, a man who was not Serrif even! Curious who this man was she swam over along the water and lifted her good arm out of the water to wave, "Hello there! It's a nice day, is it not?"

[Cilaes]

Cilaes had been looking for another flower to age when a grey, hairless head appeared in the water. She gave him a friendly greeting, spoken in musical tones from a mouth with three rows of sharp teeth. What is that? Cilaes thought as he turned to the surface of Silver Lake with surprise. It took the man a moment to extract the name Charoda from his Ethaefalan mind. Knowledge from his time with the gods, at least basic knowledge, was still accessible to him, but during the day Cilaes's mortal mind struggled to find it. It felt as though the two halves of his body had their own sets of memories, and hide their thoughts from one another with behind a thick veil when their part was done. But life was easier now than it had been at the start, when his Ethaefal mind had been almost inaccessible to Cilaes in the day. Perhaps we've begun to feel comfortable sharing our secrets now that we know each other a bit better, huh? The Charoda was still floating in the water, waiting for his answer. Cilaes didn't really want to say it was a nice day; the sun was too bright, the fact that the sun was out at all put a damper on his mood. But it was pretty out, and even if he didn't want to be present and awake it would be unfair to say otherwise. Especially when the creature with the musical voice was being so friendly. So Cilaes waved back and offered her a small smile. "Yes, the White Isle is beautiful in the Spring. I don't mean to be rude, but I don't believe I've ever seen a Charoda in Silver Lake before, are you visiting Mura?"

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

Quelen gave a little musical laugh at the man's question, "It's not rude at all. Yes, I am visiting Mura, I just arrived the other day."

As she spoke Quelen swam towards the man with soft kicks and sweeps of her arms beneath the surface of the water, "Are you a visitor to the island as well? I haven't been here long, but there don't seem to be many humans among the Konti. You are human, aren't you?" it could be hard to tell sometimes, as the Konti women mostly seemed to be human as well.

Realizing that she might be being a bit rude Quelen gave a small gasp, "Ah! Sorry, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Quelen, might I ask what your name is?"

Something seemed a little off about this man, but Quelen couldn't quite figure out what. It was so much more difficult to understand the little nuances of landwalkers than the Charodae.

[Cilaes]

The Charoda was either very perceptive or had a strange sense of small talk. Her question about his humanity shocked Cilaes. It wasn’t that he felt defensive about what he was, but the question seemed to be an odd thing to start a conversation with. Still, Quelen was right, and the world was full of strange things, so he couldn’t fault her for wondering. “No, I’m not visiting. I’ve lived on Konti Isle my whole life, though you’re right, you don’t find many people who aren’t Konti in Mura,” he pushed some of his thick brown hair away from his eyes and sighed, watching the sunlight bounce off the ripples caused by Quelen’s motion. “And no, I’m not human. Though my kind is rather rare and at times I still am very much human, so I suppose it wouldn’t be wrong to think so… I’m an Ethaefal, and my name is Cilaes. It’s a pleasure to meet you Quelen.” Cilaes bowed slightly, little more than a graceful head bob, as he introduced himself. “You’re a long way from your home if the books I’ve read are correct. May I ask what brings you to Konti Isle?”

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

Quelen tilted her head to the side slightly as Cilaes identified himself as an Ethaefal. The name sounded familiar to her... but where from. Perhaps she had heard it in a story before? Regardless, she didn't want to be rude, and so she smiled and replied, "It's a pleasure to meet you Cilaes."

The head bob Cilaes did as he introduced himself was interesting to Quelen, and she repeated the action as he asked his question. Smiling once again she replied, "Yes, it is very far to Charbosi from here. I am here because I wanted to learn of the song and dance of the Konti. I hope to learn of all the songs and dances of everyone."

She hesitated only a moment before asking her own bunch of questions, as always curious and eager to learn, "You said you're an Ethaefal, but you look human? Are you like a male Konti? Do you have scales? Or are you something different," she gave a little gasp as her eyes widened, "Oh! Are you one of the people that can turn into an animal?"

[Cilaes]

Quelen was unlike anyone Cilaes had ever met before. Most of the people Cilaes had met were Konti, and perhaps some healers and tourists on the Isle and in the Opal Temple, mostly human. Both had a large range of emotions, but the races he had met, especially the Konti, had a sort of distance about them. Whether this came from being wise, or wishing to be wise he didn't know, but he had never met someone who asked questions so freely and so eagerly. It was sometimes difficult for Cilaes to sulk about the sunlight and the general failures of the mortal world when he was in his mortal body. With Quelen floating so happily in the sparkling water, questioning him in such a musical tone Cilaes had to admit he was beginning to feel content with the day. In fact, the man went so far as to smile as he seated himself on the shore of Silver Lake so he wouldn't have to stare down at the Charoda to make eye contact. This is a person with a quest, a goal. It would be beautiful to have one of those... Just hearing her talk about her own makes me feel a little better... "No, I'm not a male Konti, they don't exist, all Konti are women," he said, smiling ever so slightly, "And I don't have any scales, what I have are these instead." He lifted his left arm and pulled his sleeve as far back as the elbow to show Quelen his tattoos. It seemed like something the curious Charoda might be interested in. Presenting his arm to her he answered the rest of her questions, "I'm not a Kelvic either, those are the people who turn to animals. The reason why I look human is because it's Syna's time in the sky. When the moon comes out my skin, hair and eyes change color. My body changes a little too, and I grow horns. So you're right, I look human, but only some of the time."

[Quelen Dran'Sora]

As Cilaes sat on the land Quelen swam closer, until her feet could touch the ground in the water. When Cilaes then pulled up his sleeve to reveal the markings on his arm she quickly walked out of the water and onto the land, bringing a fair amount of water with her due to her haste and clothing, so she could get a closer look, "What interesting marks! You said you have these instead of scales? Does that mean these marks let you breath in the water?"

She wanted to touch the markings, wondering if they felt different than skin, but only reached out her hand in their general direction before she stopped herself. She didn't want to be rude after all. Turning her attention back to Cilae as he explained what an Ethaefal she let out another sudden gasp as realization struck her, "Ah! You are one of the ones who have fallen from Leth then? I have a friend like you, but he did not look like you under Syna. He was very dark, and hairy, and had wings," she paused a moment in thought, "You wouldn't happen to know Dlight, would you? It has been some time since I last saw him and I hope he is doing well."

[Cilaes]

Quelen sloshed onto land, bringing half the lake with her. Some of her personal rainstorm dripped onto Cilaes's pants, and the grey fabric turned dark with moisture. Does that mean these marks let you breath in the water? He couldn't help it, and smiled outright. The Charoda's curiosity and almost childlike lack of inhibition were refreshing. "No, that's not what I meant. These are just tattoos, ink that people put into their skin. They don't have any special powers, people use them as identifiers, or badges of honor to be earned. Some people get them just because they like designs, it isn't something you're born with." He watched her hand draw closer and offered his arm again, nodding to let Quelen know he wouldn't mind. In fact, he was rather curious about what her own shiny, grey skin felt like. Fallen from Leth... Those words sucked the smile from Cilaes's face, and his eyes fell to the pebbly beach for a moment before he answered. "Yes, I fell. I'm afraid I may very well have known him once, but I would have a different name and face for the person you call Dlight. I doubt we would know each other now if we met." After all, there are times when I can hardly recall my own name. To recognize someone after the changes of the fall... Would that even be possible, if you could remember everyone you knew in the sky first anyway? Her description of him was intriguing though. Cilaes thought the traits sounded familiar, but he had never encountered anything like that in this life. "I suppose not all Ethaefal look alike when they fall. I take on a mortal form in the daylight, so his could easily be different, based on his Djed. I'm afraid I'm not entirely certain why I look like this when Leth falls myself. Wings you say... Where did you meet Dlight?"