#weshar

“We will miss you, Sky-Carrion, but wish you well tonight as you depart,” said Weshar, repeating the words that the Chief Healer could not, by tradition, speak to people from other worlds.  The Chief Healer nodded her head approvingly as Weshar intoned the rehearsed words.  Vox Cul-Dar stood, bandaged and bruised but able, with Rendelac in the pack that he wore on his back.  His robes had been damaged in the explosion that led to his designation as Sky-Carrion, but he had been able to clean them in exchange for his own information, information from the Rhythnian Boutique’s catalog that he was, in effect, trading back to the tribe that had culturally led to the boutique’s founding.  Much of his knowledge came from offworld Sthenites taking advantage of the luxuries of Veskid’s civilization, though, so he wasn’t sure how much would be useful in the long term.

Rendelac chimed and translated Weshar’s words just as Weshar spoke the Chief Healer’s.  Vox leaned against a walking stick (easily found from the drier fire wood that the Sthenites collected) and sipped more of the tea that he had come to enjoy.  He nodded.

“Tell them that I am grateful for their hospitality, but that I must now leave.  There is a great beast of earth and fire even now approaching them, and I would speak to it.  It means them no harm, but goodness knows it may mean harm to me.”

“Heed well my words, Vox Cul-Dar,” said Rendelac.  “I caution against speaking falsehoods.”

“This is not a falsehood, Rendelac.  It is a premonition.  My destiny awaits us.”

Rendelac buzzed and spoke to the Azurebacks who had gathered to see his departure.  The Chief Healer nodded and gestured to their city’s gates, giving him free passage to leave.  The gates were situated next to the river that flowed through the town, a river that was not impeded by the city’s wall by virtue of the gates locked into place, gates that allowed the water to flow through while impeding the progress of potential invaders.

Vox approached the gate and a massive, red and blue-scaled Sthenite pushed the door open for him.  A surprised susurrus of hisses and trills issued from the crowd as a mist, thick and roiling, poured through the door.  Other Sthenites responded in more reasonable hisses to the worried crowd as Vox stepped into the ankle-high cloud.

“This is unseasonable,” said rendelac.  “Fog and mist only emerge from their river at other times of the year, and then it manages to creep up from the portion of the river within the city as well.  Reportedly some of the guards on the wall noted the unusual cloud bank that crept up in the late afternoon, and have been puzzled as to why it stopped right at the wall this evening.”

“Thank you for the information,” said Vox, turning to wave at the Sthenites as the door closed again, hurriedly pushed by the same Sthenite who opened it.  “It does not change what I know of what is happening, but it does alter the context for how the Sthenites observe it.”

“Please share what you know of the scenario, Vox Cul-Dar,” said Rendelac.  “You have been curiously prescient.”

“All will be made clear, once it gets foggier,” said Vox, stepping closer to the river bank where the mist was thicker.  “Or perhaps steamier… this fog is warm and humid, not cold and clammy as I expected.  It makes sense, though.”

“Does it?”

“To me, at least,” said Vox.  “And, I presume, to our associate.  Reveal yourself, intruder!  You know who I am, and I know who you are, so this continued attempt at clumsy hiding helps neither of us, Igneous.”

Silence crept over the waters until, with a burbling splash, a dull-orange glow rose from the water, still obscured by the thick steam.  The figure took steps to the shoreline until Igneous became visible, a towering pillar of orange and red interspersed with blackened, charred husks.

“How did you know it was me?” said Igneous, increasing the heat around Vox.  Vox reflexively tried waving the hand with his wooden tea cup in the air to clear the extra humidity.

“The local culture is well worth investigating, Igneous.  I take it that you’ve arrived to seek Zack Gamma?”

“You might say that,” said Igneous.

“You wouldn’t be trying to help him, would you?”

“If I was, it would be no business of yours,” said Igneous.  “But I’ve got bigger fish to fry.”

“You’ve spent too long among the humans to use such an idiom,” said Vox.  “Though from the look of you, frying things may soon be your best career option.”

“That’s the main reason I’m here,” said Igneous.  “Fletch is here.”

“Yes, I know,” said Vox.  “We met… what does that have to do with anything?”

“She… threatened me.  She’s carrying a dose of Teles.”

“Is she, now?  That surprises me.  I never would have taken her for a user.”

“She isn’t.  I intended to use half of it.”

“Only half? But… last I checked, even a full dose of Teles would have little to no effect on a Pyrhian without… you mean pre-mixing, though, don’t you?”

“The frozen half of the Teles.  It might delay my metamorphosis.”

“I see,” said Vox.  “You know, most would just age with dignity rather than turning to such methods.”

“I’ve got business to finish before it happens,” said Igneous.  “And I think I’ll need the time the Teles can buy to do that.  She stole it from me, threatened me with the fiery half, and told me to stay out of her way, or help her to catch Zack if asked.  I want the Teles back.”

“Naturally.  As it so happens, I want her to stop getting in my way while hunting Gamma myself… I’ve an inkling of where we might find her, and an inkling of where we might find Gamma thanks to a gift from the Azurebacks.  But why were you approaching their city?”

“I figured someone like Gamma would create enough of a stir to cause a commotion at some trace of civilization.  This place was close enough to the landing site that word would’ve spread this far, assuming the Sthenites talk to each other.”

“Sensible.  Well then… loathe though I am to splitting a bounty, it’s worse to keep someone like Fletch around.  What do you say that we work as partners here?  First to eliminating Fletch, and then to securing Gamma?”

Igneous’ mouth twisted into a smile, a motion visible now with her altered face.