Out of the Wilderness [Open]

[Iasc]

80th of Spring 511 AV

Iasc felt surreal as he entered the docks of the floating city. It could have been the lack of certain necessities needed for survival or the unusual atmosphere of the new world that he had just entered. It was as if he was in a dream, whatever was causing it, locked away safely in his mind with reality just out of reach. As it stood he was in a poor state. It had been many days since he had eaten any food or drunk any water. His stomach had long ago given up complaining with it’s low grumbling sounds. The journey west from the coast of Sylira had been a torturous ordeal for the young scholar. A scarcity of food, water and shelter had been the norm for his trip and it was definitely showing as he exited the Southern Trading Post. His face was as pale as a ghost’s, and it had also grown quite gaunt. However, none of this was really all that visible due to the mass of very shaggy and unkempt hair that came out of his face, which he called a beard. His hair looked very similar to his beard, just as dirty and tangled, and coming down past his shoulders. The dark green robe he wore trailed along the ground, his bare, calloused feet walking on it every now and again, and seemed oversized on him. When he had put it on back in Zeltiva it had fit quite snuggly, but now it hung off him as a result of his lack of nourishment. Not very long before entering Ravok he had managed to find a stream in which to bathe. That had covered up much of the odor that had clung to him. Now, the stink was only became insufferable if one was to stand beside him.

The world that Iasc had just come into seemed very strange to him. Shops surrounded him, and where you find shops you are bound to find multitudes of people looking to off load that extra miza or two that weighed down their pockets. This was all normal. He was used to large numbers of people congregating, even if he did hate to be around so many of them. He had lived in Syliras for twenty years after all. What he found bizarre were the canals. Many of the waterways lined the city where Iasc felt that roads should have been, and in the canals were boats, some anchored and some moving around ferrying people here and there. All different shapes and sizes, some with stunning intricate designs, and others were dirty and derelict. “Where in the name of the gods am I”, he exclaimed to himself, fixated on the docks with a look of pure amazement.

He stepped off the ferry that carried him and many others into the city very cautiously. He was gripped by an inexplicable fear as he took in his surroundings. Looking at the people and the shops he suddenly realised how hungry and thirsty he was. It seemed his stomach could feel the near proximity to food as well as it began to grumble excitedly. As he walked around he noticed a sign that read ‘tavern’. Hoping for some food and drink he went inside. He wasn’t looking to stay and so quickly made his way to the bar asking for a loaf of bread and as big a glass of water that he could get, due to the small amount of gold in his pocket. As he was waiting for his food and drink to come he looked around the tavern. It was full of people, none of whom looked like they would be particularly nice to talk to. Anyway, that didn’t matter since there was nowhere to sit. He took his bread and water giving a gold miza in return and receiving a handful of silver and copper ones which threw into his pocket without counting. He then went outside and walked around for a chime, looking for a nice quite spot to sit down. It didn’t take him long to find one, the wall of a building of some sort that didn’t seem to interest the other people in the docks. He took off the mandolin that was strapped to his back via a makeshift spare bow string that he had fashioned into a strap and laid it on the ground. He then put his bow and quiver of arrows down as well and sat beside them on the stone ground, and began eating the bread and drinking the water. For too long he had taken such sustenance for granted. He savored every bite and every sip.