90th of Zi'da, 716.
Travelling had never been so terrifying as it was today.
Tossing his mind back a few arcs, it hadn't been that long at all since he'd made the first journey from Desnind up to Andaris, following nothing more than the occasional murky dream of a small squirrel pointing in the direction, beckoning him. Pelting him with visions of unfamiliar landmarks and temperate forests broken by tall mountains. Jumping on whatever boats he could grab without a second thought to whom he might be trusting his life, where or how they might arrive at their next destination. He'd wandered almost aimlessly from home and he'd surprised himself when he actually arrived at the place he was supposed to be. Having no experience with the outside world beyond Desnind besides the occasional story heard from the edges of the campfires, not even a decent understanding of the common tongue, he'd thrown himself into the world head-first. And come out of it alive. Or at least, that's what he'd thought back then.
Back then, his life wasn't at stake. He wasn't abandoning his plans, fearing for his life. Fearing that every time another headache pounded through his skull like a carpenter was busy hammering away at the soft tissue beneath, more blood would start leaking from the corners of his eyes. That he'd start inexplicably coughing it up. Worst of all, that nobody would be able to stop it. Now, as the heavy wooden planks hit the harbour and the noise of Rharne steadily filled the air, the only thing Nir'wei could think of was finding Faith. "Come on, boy." Greyhide lifted his slender muzzle and yawned. "Keep close." The big grey wolf had seemed surprisingly calm through the boat journey, hiding out below the deck with the Sev'ryn and snoozing for most of the days, pleasantly content with feeding off what scraps Nir'wei could spare. Jasper, too, had made little fuss, occasionally bouncing into the ocean but quickly returning upon finding none of the freshwater fish he was familiar with. Now he sat on Nir'weis lap, and as he stood, the otter dug its claws into his shirt and settled at his chest, making a verbal demand to be carried in the form of several squeaking noises.
With one arm cradling Jasper, Nir'wei packed up the last of their belongings and stuffed them into Malice's saddle-bags. Where others set first feet on Rharne's docks with their families, friends and others, Nir'wei settled with his horse, his wolf and his otter; a sight to see, but not one he felt like explaining to any of the other passengers, who gave him odd looks as he disembarked and started straight for the city gate and didn't bother stopping.
An outpost created by the Order of Adunih. Archailist's voice spoke clearly despite the chattering crowds. A place you've heard of before, remember? He didn't. Perhaps, at some point in his early years, someone from the Order had arrived at Desnind, but if they had, he'd never heard of it. I'm sure it won't be hard to find. Or, you could always ask for directions. He would have, but Greyhide's appearance seemed to unnerve passers-by, regardless of his calm demeanour. Being an odd sight to look at was nothing new, especially in the last few days, as nerves and pain had worn at his face during since the incident and in the few more incidents since. His hair was haggard and covered in knots, his face was dirty, all of his clothes stank of the sea and were dry and scratchy from the salt-water wash. He'd spent thirty days sitting around on a boat and yet he felt, and looked, more exhausted than ever. You know it won't be forever. Archailist's voice turned soft as the spirits presence settled on his shoulder, unable to exact any real force but somehow still able to create a strange illusion of weight where he sat. It felt so real, Nir'wei had to mentally stop himself from trying to reach up and give the squirrel a reassuring pat.
The letter from Faith hadn't given any specific directions, it'd only said something about an outpost she'd be staying at... and something about a coloured cloak. Not much to go on. However, it didn't take long to spot somebody with a cloak matching a similar colour to what Faith had described, walking through the street with some urgency to their step and a hood pulled up over their head. He only had to speed up his pace to match theirs, tugging the reluctant and heavily-packed Malice up the slanted streets until the hooded figure disappeared into a two-storey building filled with yet more hooded people; an abundance of them, in fact. Green, blue, grey... hooded, unhooded, rushing about inside and out. Looks like the place, Archailist muttered. Wonder what brought her to here, of all the places in the world. Something he'd have to ask her.
Leaving Malice and Jasper near the entrance, with Greyhide on guard, Nir'wei stepped inside and was nearly shouldered by a blue-cloaked figure rushing by in a hurry. "Uhm, excuse me." A blue-cloaked person, a hood obscuring parts of her hair, mumbled an apology under her breath as she squeezed past him, eager to get back out of the door. "Sorry!" Well, for such an unassuming place, it certainly seemed pretty crowded. Despite the worry that'd practically eaten Nir'wei from the inside-out over the past thirty days or more, nerves were starting to eat up his insides and erode his courage. Bravado was a difficult thing to muster when he now frequently brushed a finger under his nostrils to check for signs of spontaneous bleeding in public.
Wait. "Faith?" He swore he saw someone, small, dark-haired. "Faith!" Maybe if he yelled, he could catch her attention.
Travelling had never been so terrifying as it was today.
Tossing his mind back a few arcs, it hadn't been that long at all since he'd made the first journey from Desnind up to Andaris, following nothing more than the occasional murky dream of a small squirrel pointing in the direction, beckoning him. Pelting him with visions of unfamiliar landmarks and temperate forests broken by tall mountains. Jumping on whatever boats he could grab without a second thought to whom he might be trusting his life, where or how they might arrive at their next destination. He'd wandered almost aimlessly from home and he'd surprised himself when he actually arrived at the place he was supposed to be. Having no experience with the outside world beyond Desnind besides the occasional story heard from the edges of the campfires, not even a decent understanding of the common tongue, he'd thrown himself into the world head-first. And come out of it alive. Or at least, that's what he'd thought back then.
Back then, his life wasn't at stake. He wasn't abandoning his plans, fearing for his life. Fearing that every time another headache pounded through his skull like a carpenter was busy hammering away at the soft tissue beneath, more blood would start leaking from the corners of his eyes. That he'd start inexplicably coughing it up. Worst of all, that nobody would be able to stop it. Now, as the heavy wooden planks hit the harbour and the noise of Rharne steadily filled the air, the only thing Nir'wei could think of was finding Faith. "Come on, boy." Greyhide lifted his slender muzzle and yawned. "Keep close." The big grey wolf had seemed surprisingly calm through the boat journey, hiding out below the deck with the Sev'ryn and snoozing for most of the days, pleasantly content with feeding off what scraps Nir'wei could spare. Jasper, too, had made little fuss, occasionally bouncing into the ocean but quickly returning upon finding none of the freshwater fish he was familiar with. Now he sat on Nir'weis lap, and as he stood, the otter dug its claws into his shirt and settled at his chest, making a verbal demand to be carried in the form of several squeaking noises.
With one arm cradling Jasper, Nir'wei packed up the last of their belongings and stuffed them into Malice's saddle-bags. Where others set first feet on Rharne's docks with their families, friends and others, Nir'wei settled with his horse, his wolf and his otter; a sight to see, but not one he felt like explaining to any of the other passengers, who gave him odd looks as he disembarked and started straight for the city gate and didn't bother stopping.
An outpost created by the Order of Adunih. Archailist's voice spoke clearly despite the chattering crowds. A place you've heard of before, remember? He didn't. Perhaps, at some point in his early years, someone from the Order had arrived at Desnind, but if they had, he'd never heard of it. I'm sure it won't be hard to find. Or, you could always ask for directions. He would have, but Greyhide's appearance seemed to unnerve passers-by, regardless of his calm demeanour. Being an odd sight to look at was nothing new, especially in the last few days, as nerves and pain had worn at his face during since the incident and in the few more incidents since. His hair was haggard and covered in knots, his face was dirty, all of his clothes stank of the sea and were dry and scratchy from the salt-water wash. He'd spent thirty days sitting around on a boat and yet he felt, and looked, more exhausted than ever. You know it won't be forever. Archailist's voice turned soft as the spirits presence settled on his shoulder, unable to exact any real force but somehow still able to create a strange illusion of weight where he sat. It felt so real, Nir'wei had to mentally stop himself from trying to reach up and give the squirrel a reassuring pat.
The letter from Faith hadn't given any specific directions, it'd only said something about an outpost she'd be staying at... and something about a coloured cloak. Not much to go on. However, it didn't take long to spot somebody with a cloak matching a similar colour to what Faith had described, walking through the street with some urgency to their step and a hood pulled up over their head. He only had to speed up his pace to match theirs, tugging the reluctant and heavily-packed Malice up the slanted streets until the hooded figure disappeared into a two-storey building filled with yet more hooded people; an abundance of them, in fact. Green, blue, grey... hooded, unhooded, rushing about inside and out. Looks like the place, Archailist muttered. Wonder what brought her to here, of all the places in the world. Something he'd have to ask her.
Leaving Malice and Jasper near the entrance, with Greyhide on guard, Nir'wei stepped inside and was nearly shouldered by a blue-cloaked figure rushing by in a hurry. "Uhm, excuse me." A blue-cloaked person, a hood obscuring parts of her hair, mumbled an apology under her breath as she squeezed past him, eager to get back out of the door. "Sorry!" Well, for such an unassuming place, it certainly seemed pretty crowded. Despite the worry that'd practically eaten Nir'wei from the inside-out over the past thirty days or more, nerves were starting to eat up his insides and erode his courage. Bravado was a difficult thing to muster when he now frequently brushed a finger under his nostrils to check for signs of spontaneous bleeding in public.
Wait. "Faith?" He swore he saw someone, small, dark-haired. "Faith!" Maybe if he yelled, he could catch her attention.
