Discover the sky... [ask kaida]

[kaida]

...and it needs to be done by the end of the summer. My master will not tolerate tardiness in his plans..."

Iana nodded with a serious stare, 'By the end of the summer, and not a day later.' and she led the messenger out of her shop.

She leaned against the door as it closed, sighing loudly. Owning a successful shop was a great accomplishment in this age... but at times it brought on a lot more hassle than it was worth. 'Give me the days of roaming free, of discovery and... oh sizzlegears. I need more wires if I'm going to do this right. I suppose that's discovery enough for today.'

Iana glanced around her shop for any small projects she might have left from her last trip into the town centre. It was always good business to have a few things to sell while out in the market, and Iana was never one to pass on the chance to make a trade for something new and interesting. She tossed a little mechanical bird and some coins into her pack and headed off to town.

---

The market was bustling with activity.. more than Iana had expected on such a cloudy day. Large crowds always made things more difficult for her, as she could barely be seen over the edge of a shoppe stand. More often than not, she's assumed to be the child of some merchant, without a coin to buy the many amazing things to be found every day in the large square.

'..pardon me... excuse me!... ouch..toes... pardon..thank you.. coming through.. sorry..' Iana squeezed her way through the crowd until she reached a quieter part of the market, so that she could see what there was for trade today...

[Talwyn]

The cloudy day matched Talwyn's mood. He had reached Tamasha the previous evening and had went straight to the inn he always stayed at. The owner, a large, burly man that seemed to be about 45 years, was one of the few people Talwyn trusted. Not only that, but despite knowing what Tal looked like, the man trusted him as well. As such this man, Baden, was one of the few people Talwyn considered to be a friend. Not only that, but Baden always seemed to have the latest rumors on legendary items, lost and forgotten ruins and more of the sorts. This time however, he had nothing new for Talwyn to put his hopes on.

As if that wasn't bad enough, his other 'contact' had no promising leads either. Hence his mood. The fact he was in Tamasha, one of the largest city's in Valear, wasn't helping either. People tend to get frightened of him when they see what he looks like. So, every second in town, was a second he was on guard.

So, while he didn't like to be outside in Tamasha, he was now absentmindedly meandering through the city, trying to figure out how to proceed. As such, it was no surprise he failed to notice the little laifel. Falling on the ground face first, he slowly got up and quickly pulled his cowl back down to hide his face. Noticing Iana, he kneeled down so he could look her in the eyes. "My apologies little one, I hope I didn't hurt you."
After taking a quick look around he went on. "I don't seem to see your parents, are you lost?"

Of course, he had no idea Iana was actually older then he was... much older even, so he continued to look around to see if he could spot the girls parents all the while hoping she had not seen his face. If she were to start screaming that he was some sort of monster... well that was a thought he'd rather not think about.

[kaida]

Although there were many new things put on display, nothing caught her eye, and so she walked on farther into the market. Iana crossed the busiest parts of the square, with much ducking and squeezing, and made her way closer to the smith-shops, where she needed to be. She noticed a stand surrounded by new tools and decided to have a look; She could always use a new tool to bring a different approach to her work.

The little laifel craned her neck to see the many wares in the stand; She was so preocuppied with her shopping that she didn't see the mantled man striding towards her until they were both sprawled in the dirt.

Iana sat up and rubbed the dirt from her shirt as the man scampered up to fix his cowl. She found herself staring somewhat rudely at his hands, his skin was blue! She stood up quickly when he kneeled down to speak to her.

"My apologies little one, I hope I didn't hurt you... I don't seem to see your parents, are you lost?"

She watched him scan the crowd, and noticed that his hair was also oddly colored. Iana wondered if something similar to her magical mishap had happened to him, but dismissed the idea as it was too odd a chance.

"I'm unhurt. Although you don't seem to be the better for your fall. You've got stones stuck on your face,' Iana noticed as she ducked her head to see past his cowl, "Here, let me see." and she reached out to wipe away the stones and dirt with her sleeve...




~OOC: Sorry for the late reply! Had a busy mother's day! haha

[Talwyn]

Instinctively Talwyn pulled back his head while pulling his cowl down further. "No it's alright... it's always like that..." The last part was nothing more then a whisper. He grew slightly nervous as it seemed she had seen his face, though she didn't seem scared... yet anyway.

"I still don't see your parents little one, do you need any help looking for them?" He said in a somewhat desperate attempt to change the topic. Though to be honest, he was rather grateful the girls parents didn't seem to be around... If she were to tell them he had stones stuck on his face and they would decide he was some sort of monster things could get rather ugly... Thanks to his looks, people tended to use a 'shoot first, ask questions later' approach towards him.

((OOC: That's alright Sorry for the short post, but it's all I could think off ^^'))

[kaida]

Iana raised an eyebrow, thinking this one to be quite peculiar. "You can stop looking so worried. My parents are nowhere near this place, and I'm not a child. Although I am rather curious to know how you keep those stones on your face." she asked, becoming more curious about the matter, "Is it a special glue? I've never come across anything quite so sticky that it would adhere to skin like that... Or maybe they aren't stones at all! What did you use?"

Iana's eyes sparkled with excitement at the thought that she might have a new discovery on her hands, and became more than a little excited.
"Or perhaps you've used magic? Some sort of chemistry to make the stones fuse to your skin..." she reached out to lift his sleeve, noticing once more that his skin was blue, "And your skin.. was it always this way? Or did you do it at the same as the stones?"

[Talwyn]

Not a child? How could that be? Well... that did mean he most likely wouldn't be chased out of the city by an angry mob which was good. What wasn't good however, was how the little girl... err... woman? He couldn't quite decide what to call her. In any case, her getting overly exited about this was making him feel awkward.

"No, there is no... No they... Yes magic... No, no... Of course it..." He tried to answer her flood of questions yet he was unable to interrupt her incessant chattering. Noticing she wanted to lift his sleeve, he quickly pulled his arm back. "Would you stop your babbling already woman!?" A quick glance at the staring crowd told him he had raised his voice in an attempt to silence Iana's ceaseless flow of questions. Quickly lowering his voice to a more usual volume he went on. "Sorry about that... Look, I'll answer whatever question you have if you can promise to not tell anyone about this. Most people would rather chase me out of town as if I am some sort of demon. So, do you have any place where I can answer your questions, one at a time, in private?"

[kaida]

Iana froze as blood rushed to her cheeks, embarrassed at how easily she'd gotten carried away.

"Sorry about that... Look, I'll answer whatever question you have if you can promise to not tell anyone about this. Most people would rather chase me out of town as if I am some sort of demon. So, do you have any place where I can answer your questions, one at a time, in private?"

Iana frowned slightly as she pondered the situation; On one hand, she had the chance to learn something new, and to perhaps use this new knowledge in her inventions. On the other, she had work to do, and had to get it done soon... And why was this stranger so eager to divulge his secrets to her, in private? She'd learned long ago that nothing was free, especially knowledge.
"What do you want in return?" she asked, plopping her hands on her hips, one eyebrow raised.

[Talwyn]

"Cautious aren't we?" He replied with a small grin. He slowly rose again, towering over Iana as he placed his hand at his chin, to think. "I had not thought that far ahead to be honest. When you look like me, being the center of attention is something you wish to avoid." As he glanced around, he noticed most people had resumed their business, but several were still staring at him.

"It is something I prefer not to talk about, that much is true, but it seemed like the only way to make you shut your mouth for more then a second." The smile on his face indicated that the last part had been, more or less, a joke. "So what I want, is your word that you keep everything you know about me to yourself. I have no desire to be chased out of the city again because some people can't seem to understand you should never judge others by how they look." While he faced her, his eyes were instead darting around to see if people were still staring at him, and he was obviously uncomfortable with it.

[kaida]

"So what I want, is your word that you keep everything you know about me to yourself. I have no desire to be chased out of the city again because some people can't seem to understand you should never judge others by how they look."

"You are willing to spend time telling me your secrets, with nothing in return but my word of secrecy?" Iana questioned skeptically. "That seems rather out of place. However, if that is your offer, I'll not turn it down."
Iana noticed that the crowd had diminished enough that she could see the blacksmith shop. She still had to buy wires, and hopefully sell her gadget... "I do still have errands to run... Perhaps we could meet this evening? There is a tavern near my home, Baden's Inn. Do you know of it?"

[Talwyn]

Tal laughed at the way Iana put it. He wasn't sure if this truly was the right decision, but what other options did he have? He had nothing to offer her but he hated it when he had to resort to ehm... 'more drastic measures'. As such, he had decided to gamble on the only non drastic option, which was hoping his tale would generate enough sympathy from her to make her agree to keeping things a secret.

"Well, if you say it like that it does seem odd. But its the only offer I can make. Although... I do have some questions for you as well. So perhaps we should call it an exchange of information, instead of 'me telling you my secrets'. Either way it will come down to me having to trust your word though. I have, of course, other methods of persuasion... but I hate having to resort to them. Especially if things can be settled in a more civilized manner." Though it could easily be interpreted as a threat, the tone of his voice clearly implied that he was merely stating it as a fact, and that he truly hoped to settle things in a, as he called it, civilized manner.

"As for the inn you spoke of, that is actually where I am currently staying and I suppose that will do. I'll see you tonight then." And with that he was off once again wandering through the city, though this time he made sure he paid more attention to his surroundings.

When evening came, he returned to the inn and was happy to notice the strange woman hadn't arrived yet. Walking up to the counter he raised his hand in greeting to Baden. "I'd like an ale and some dinner Baden." The innkeeper nodded and got him his ale. "Dinner will be done in ten minutes Tal, so go take a seat." Taking his ale, he nodded to his friend and walked over to a table in the corner, to at least try and take some refuge in the shadows.

When his dinner arrived, he thanked Baden and started eating. Now that he thought of it, he hadn't eaten since leaving the inn this morning so he was starving. Even while eating though, he kept staring towards the door to see when the strange woman from earlier today would come in.

[dreamsavior]

Rufin's throat was parched with thirst as he arrived in Tamasha Village. One thing he'd forgotten to bring when he left on his "adventure" yesterday was water. He'd come upon a small stream earlier that morning and had his fill, but after the long walk to the city his thirst had returned. His mind raced to think of ways to solve this problem. He could wait for it to rain and catch some of it in his mouth. The sky had been cloudy all day, and from his meteorology studies he estimated 67% chance of precipitation. But it would probably happen as the day turned to evening, and he was thirsty now. Perhaps there was another solution.

Making his way through the street, he finally looked up and scanned his surroundings. It took effort to pull himself away from his thoughts, but he figured it'd be easier to find a solution if he looked for one. He looked around for anything that might hold water, like a well, or a barrel, or a cactus. Finding nothing, he looked at the buildings. One of them not far away had a sign that said Baden's Inn. Rufin recalled reading that an inn was a place where travelers could get food, drink and shelter. Since he was a traveler now, he smiled at his good luck and changed his direction.

Rufin walked straight into the inn and to the bar, not bothering to look around first. He sat at the first empty stool he found. Sitting at last after walking all day, he suddenly realized how tired and sore he was. Traveling was not something he was used to yet. But sitting at the bar made him immediately feel better, so he sat there contently, letting his eyes glaze over with thoughts again.

Soon Baden, the innkeeper, walked up to him and stood across from him behind the counter. "What'll it be?" he grumbled. Rufin didn't look up as he didn't hear a thing. The innkeeper raised his voice, "Hey you!" Still no response from Rufin. This time Baden snapped his fingers loudly directly in front of Rufin's face.

"Hmm..?" Rufin said dumbly, finally looking up to meet the stare of the innkeeper. "Oh, I'm sorry.." he began, realizing he had been paying no attention to the man. "I was just thinking about--"

"If you're gonna sit in my inn you're gonna have to order something! So what do you want?" Baden cut him off, sounding annoyed. "Oh... right.." Rufin muttered to himself. He was here to order something to drink, he suddenly recalled. "Uhh... what do you have to drink?"

Baden replied, "Well, we've got ale." Rufin blinked twice. "Ale?" The innkeeper scoffed, "Yeah, ale! You don't know what ale is, son?" Rufin looked down at the counter. He knew what ale was, of course... it was a beverage brewed from malted barley fermented with yeast. But he had never tried it. He decided to take a bold step and replied, "Uhh... okay, I'll have some ale."

Looking very impatient, Baden walked away to pour the ale. Rufin only had to wait for less than a minute for the mug to arrive. He looked into the frothy white foam and stirred it a little with his finger to see the dark reddish brown liquid beneath. Then he slowly raised the mug to his lips and sipped. What he tasted was more awful than he could imagine. He gagged and wanted to spit it out, but he forced himself to swallow it, shivering with disgust as it traveled down his throat. He then rubbed his tongue on his sleeve to try to get the taste out of his mouth. Feeling like he was going to be ill, he pushed the ale away from him, sure that quenching his thirst wasn't worth it. "Umm..." he said to the innkeeper as he passed by, "Maybe I'll just take whatever you have to eat..."

So, Rufin thought to himself wryly, this is what they call "adventuring."

(OOC: Seemed like a good thread for me to jump into. ^^ Sorry if I got carried away. I'll try to keep my other posts a bit shorter)

[Shaher]

Stepping out of the gloomy day into a nearby inn, Shaher kept his hood low over his face, hiding his face from the site of this brainless rabble of mortals. His sword hand was clenched constantly in a fist by his side as he resisted the urge to cause a scene in this populated place. Regretting it now, he had opted to leave his blade where he wouldn't be tempted by it, though a short fly away it was he was determined not to reveal his identity to these...people. Not yet anyway. Their time would come soon enough.

He kept his wings folded tightly against his back, covered by his flowing cloak that draped across the ground. His heavily armored boots echoed around the building as he stepped in, his hair swaying softly as he walked. Not bothering to answer the bewildered stares he received from most patrons in the room, he made his way to the counter and lifted his head a little, his mouth revealed in the shadow of the hood by the dim lights of the room.

"Barkeep, an ale. And a room if you have it" Shaher said in his politest tone, the words sounding hollow and bitter despite his attempts.

"We don't like strangers in this place friend" the barkeeper replied in a scathing tone. "So you just keep on walking before you see yourself into some trouble"

Shaher ignored the mans incompetence and reached across, grabbing a nearby discarded ale as ts patron seemingly licked his sleeve. Shaher regarded him with morbid curiosity for a minute before draining the liquid, lifting his head to the barkeep to reveal a snarl as he tossed a few coins to the bench in way of the novice struggling to hold down his dinner.
"Now, a room if you have it barkeep." he said, raising his head once again, his bright eyes glimmering in the dank room.
"And make it fast, my patience wears thin and you don;t want to be finding yourself in my kind of trouble"

The barkeep grunted and shuffled off, grabbing a nearby key and thrusting it in Shaher's face. "Pray you don't make a mess or I'll be mopping the floor with your face, have no doubt." he grunted, attempting a threat but failing miserably as he walked off before Shaher could respond.

Shaher found his room, top of the stairs away from the other patrons. Staring out at the city below from his small, grimy window he sneered as the pathetic rabble bustled amongst themselves, the deeds of their day soon forgotten by the merchants as they passed like the wind, insignificant yet ever present.

(OOC: Apologies but I could hardly let a fine brew go to waste. )