There had been a lengthy silence after they'd both finished drinking. Astra's gaze, normally boasting a hardened exterior, had changed. Her eyes changed colours a multitude of times, her biqaj heritage betraying the flurry of emotions she felt as she processed what she had just witnessed.
And then, after everything seemed to sink in, Astra rose from her seat, rounded the table, and hugged Darius as he sat. The bearded blond held onto the arms that tightly embraced him. It was a display of affection that he was not used to receiving from the fierce beauty that, but he was grateful for it. In the presence of any other young woman, he'd have blushed -
and he had done precisely that in the past - but somehow it was different with Astra. It felt...
comfortable.
"Well," she said, pulling back to briefly look towards the bedroom, where Ledas remained sprawled out upon the bed,
"that explains the ice tiger!"
As if hearing this, Ledas climbed up onto his feet upon the bed, before pawing at the ball of yarn and flopping back onto his side.
A nervous laugh was shared by Darius and Astra, breaking the tension, but as the brunette eased away, Darius could see that her eyes were glistening in the natural light that crept through the window. She was quick to wipe her eyes with the back of one hand as she returned to her seat and looked back across at Darius.
"And then," she added, appearing to catch her breath,
"you went to the garden?"
"Aye," Darius nodded.
Astra had been referring to the
Garden Of Remembrance And Thanks in Scalvoris Town, for Darius had told her that he was going there. But there had been another garden that he'd ultimately stepped into...
So
he told her of Bao the Brave, and the journey he had shared with the cadouri, and Zoro, and the young girl named Joy. He spoke of Bao's death, and of carrying him into
Zuudaria. He told her about his encounter with his mother, Jean Baer, a name the half-biqaj knew from
the rowboat that accompanied the
Libertalia. And he explained as best he could the experience of entering
a feast hosted by Immortals.
Throughout it all, Astra listened intently, taking everything in. As unbelievable as such tales might have seemed, there was nothing in the way Astra reacted that suggested she thought he was telling anything but the truth. Darius had shown himself to be an honest man, and she didn't appear to doubt his claims.
And besides, she had drunk the contents of the vial.
It was to that small glass container that the brunette pointed as she took one last swig from her drink and placed the empty tankard upon the table. Her eyes glowed orange, which Darius knew to be a sign of respect.
"And that vial was a gift from Saiore?" she repeated her earlier question.
"Aye," Darius nodded,
"but it wasn't the only gift. She also gave Ledas that ball of yarn. There were a couple of other things, but I really wanted to show you this one."
The bearded blond reached into his knapsack, then, and pulled out a small wooden carving and held it out in the palm of his hand. The carving was in the shape of a rampant bear, standing on its hind legs with its claws and teeth bared. Astra watched on with a furrowed brow.
"This bear is a form of protection," Darius explained.
"It is a sentry. I can see what it sees, and I can bring it to life."
Astra exchanged glances between Darius and the seemingly harmless wooden carving as the settlement founder spoke. Joining her was Ledas, who had been stirred by his curiosity - an aspect of his catlike behaviour that never seemed far away - and he stepped out of the bedroom to watch.
"We can keep it here, in Hopetoun, or on the Libteralia, and it will protect the settlers and the crew."
He paused as he looked at the carving, and then had a realisation.
"We should probably do this outside," Darius added.
A few moments later, the trio stood behind the building, in what passed for a quiet part of Hopetoun. Darius had asked one of the settlement's guards to ensure they weren't disturbed, and now they stood, staring at the small wooden bear that had been set down upon a large rock.
"I'm not entirely sure how to make this work," Darius admitted,
"as I haven't seen it done before, but I don't think it should be too difficult."
A few moments of silence followed, as Darius studied the wooden carving and focused his thoughts on 'waking it up', he soon discovered that he could see three figures: a man, a woman, and a tiger. Beyond them stood a soldier, his back turned. He quickly realised that he was looking back at himself, as if he was the one on the rock. As he focused harder, there was a rumbling noise that came from the stone.
Astra took half a step backwards as the rock itself began to shake, and loose pebbles and clods of dirt fell to the ground. But the carving stayed put, even as the shaking increased in its ferocity.
But then, all of a sudden, the wooden bear appeared to leap off the rock of its own volition. In midair, it grew in size, its wooden form being replaced by fur-covered limbs. By the time it landed on the ground, the carving was no more. In its place stood a hulking brown bear, still on its hind feed, almost twice Darius' height. The beast let out a roar, saliva and spittle escaping the bared teeth in its jaw.
Darius felt a surge of adrenaline run through him, but strangely, he did not fear the creature. His trust in Saiore convinced him that they were safe.
Then it dropped down onto all fours, and became surprisingly docile as it approached Darius. It nuzzled against him, though its form was so powerful that in doing so, it almost knocked him over.
He looked at the others. Ledas didn't appear fazed by the creature's appearance. But Astra was watching with an expression of awe, and then he turned to see that the guard was doing the same thing. Darius quickly realised that the news of his protective bear would not stay quiet for long.
