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  • Beqanna

    COTY

    Assailant -- Year 226

    QOTY

    "But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura


    [open]  Part of the ocean; Oceane/any
    #1
    The water entity takes his time after meeting the pale-green and silver mare in the Field. He lingers by the place’s waterfall, but eventually, he decides to move on - rather by accident, for this power is new and strange to him (a feature of the water he had never had before) - he makes his decision to move while he is ankle-deep in the water, resulting in a teleport.

    Or, well, accident… he usually is ankle-deep in the water, so the move from one waterfall to the next is not too hard to imagine. When he ends up in the middle of a warm jungle, next to the refreshing waterfall there, he is initially surprised, but not for too long. Tephra’s climate reminds him of Atollon, and the waterfall is a fantastic bonus. He could live here, he thinks; in fact he decides that he will.

    As he journeys through the colorful forest, the sea-coloured male finds the scent of a familiar mare; Divest had come from here when they met in the Field, and even though he hadn’t come with her right away he now smiles to himself. As if the Light had called him here, he belongs. The watery male strolls on, curious about who he’ll meet. A place as lush as this one, couldn’t be empty of life, could it?

    @Oceane
    #2

    oceane
    a little white light
    in a sea gone black


    Fueled by a combination of duty to her kingdom and anxiety avoidance, the bygone Queen of Loess departs from the gilded forest of Sylva in the direction of their northern neighbor by employing the genie magic she has not often used since abdicating and relocating away from the foothills. Deep-seated melancholy rests in the center of her chest, a guest that hasn't left in weeks, though she does her best to shake away the cold tendrils of this depression as she suddenly apparates into existence just inside the border of Tephra.

    The jungle clings to her, humid and pungent, as she unfurls her impressive double-wings for a brief stretch. Quietly, she sighs and begins to move forward through the verdant territory, the golden chains at her ankles tinkling melodically with each step. Oceane does her best to present herself the way she'd like to be perceived, using her magic to alter her appearance enough to remove the fatigue from beneath her eyes and the tautness from her lips.

    The sound of unrelenting water draws her attention and the opalescent woman adjusts herself to move in the direction of the source. The waterfall she finds is beautiful, though it's the sight of a departing stallion that catches her attention. His brightly-colored frame moves away from the basin and through the trees, disappearing just as soon as she had spotted him. Oceane nickers loudly in his direction, pulling her wings closer to her frame as she squeezes between trees and through undergrowth to minimize the distance between herself and the stranger.

    “Excuse me,” she calls out to him, her fluted ears pressed forward expectantly for his response. When she's caught his attention, Oceane pairs a kind smile with a polite nod, slipping into her role of diplomat easily. “I apologize for the intrusion. I couldn't stop myself from exploring, Tephra is far too beautiful to wait at the treeline.” She grins warmly at the man, pushing away her sadness as she trips over her words:

    “I am Oceane, of Loess. Sorry ─ of Sylva.”




    — @Ahti
    “”
    s | n
    #3
    Ahti walks without haste, as he does approximately 99% of his time. He is of the opinion that with careful footing, one can cover about as much distance as one who steps hurriedly, but trips every now or then, or who accidentally takes a circumferential path. Exploring is an unhurried business, or it should be, for he wouldn’t want to miss neither the obvious nor the hidden details, as they could all be equally important.

    As such he is easy to overtake for anyone who wants to, like Oceane. Her nicker is initially loud enough to reach him, though he doesn’t immediately turn; he is just about admiring a colourful flower, so he turns only an ear in her direction. However, it doesn’t take him another heartbeat to divert his attention and listen to her speech about borders. He nods to her, seriously as always, before admitting: ”It is much the same for me. Apparently I can teleport through the waterfall, which is a new aspect of the water element to me.” He doesn’t add that he’d much rather trade it for the song of the blood of others - telling him who was ill or poisoned had always been a great asset to the herbal healer, but he knows that most do not take such commentary lightly. Fear is often hiding in the unknown.

    ”I’m Ahti. A pleasure to meet you, Oceane. Quite a beautiful name to call on, I must say.” He offers a genuine smile, even though he sees her wings are not the same as his oily fur and fins. He studies her face and expression, finding her an acceptable diplomat and wondering about the small stutter. ”Is your recent move not to your liking?” he wonders aloud. Not that he is all-knowing, far from it, but she did seem a little off-put by having to correct herself.

    @Oceane
    #4

    oceane
    a little white light
    in a sea gone black


    She grins at his assessment of his new ability to teleport through water ─ she, herself, had been disconcerted the first time she'd realized Beqanna had molded her into a genie and gifted her with abilities far beyond any she'd ever thought it possible for her to possess. At first, the power had rankled her. She'd woken countless nights with the fear that she had turned into one of the arithmancers from her past, that the dark magic of Nau-Aib had leaked into her life here, with Ledger. With Sylva. But as the weeks had passed and she'd practiced her handle on it, only allowing herself to utilize the power in moments that she felt entirely confident in her ability to do so, Oceane learned to trust herself as a genie.

    “It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Ahti,” she responds with a kind smile, her double-wings rustling against her sleek sides at the compliment. His question, rather straightforward, draws a small chuckle from the woman who finds herself pleased to be dealing with someone who isn't fearful of stepping on hooves and would rather dive straight to the point. “Old habits and all of that,” she explains with a casual warmth and a flick of her lavender tail, “I'm quite enjoying Sylva, but I dedicated nearly fifteen years to Loess. It's still odd to wake up to the golden forest instead of the foothills and canyons.”

    Her amber eyes search his for a moment before she returns the favor and asks Ahti a question of her own. “Is Tephra your home, or are we two teleporting intruders who've happened upon each other today?”




    — @Ahti
    “”
    s | n
    i must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
    and all i ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by
    #5
    The aqua male finds a joy in this conversation, drawn to the, let’s say, more sophisticated bunch of companions in the world. She, too, seems to enjoy something about their interaction for she indulges him with a smile or two readily at hand; smiles that reach her eyes, and to him that says more than most of her words.

    The conversation reaches below the initial surface easily when she explains more about the lands Loess and Sylva, making him wonder what in the world had caused her to move away. Fifteen years are a lifetime in horse years, and she doesn’t look that old, so he suspects a longevity at the least. She sounds experienced. Must have dedicated her life to diplomacy, but she is one of the rarer souls who genuinely enjoy making new connections. Perhaps the change of scenery is just that. Or it is to another’s benefit.

    He decides against diving that deep, not set on opening any wounds, old or new. ”Hills and canyons,” he muses and gives a short shake of his head. ”Not my climate I think,” he offers with a roll of a shoulder, causing a small thin back fin to rise and fall back to become nearly invisible again, emphasising why he can’t leave humidity.

    Her question follows and his answer comes rapidly, easily. ”If I could find whomever rules in the moment, then yes, I was about to make Tephra my home,” he chuckles a bit. ”So it’d be my pleasure to escort you, teleporting intruderess.” His eyes gleam a little when he smiles, then nods to the jungle. If they would meet any one inhabitants, they could work it out further. If not, a tour of discovery would be in place.

    @Oceane
    #6

    oceane
    a little white light
    in a sea gone black


    There's something about the turquoise stallion that Oceane immediately takes a liking to. A life of diplomacy has taught her that some relationships need steady strenuous effort, that they must be worked toward. Even if they don't start out particularly rocky, there are just some acquaintances that wil never become more than just that. But her favorite part of diplomacy has always been the individals she happens upon who make her feel, right from the start, that they will be fast friends.

    She had felt that way with the late Lepis. With Leilan. With Aquaria. And though it had been a long while since the genie had seen any of them, she has no doubt that a reunion with either Leilan or Aquaria would feel as if there'd never been a lapse in their time together.

    The start of her conversation with Ahti feels similarly, and the bygone Queen of Loess leans into it. It would be good to have a new friend. She chuckles at his assessment of Loess' topography, gaze flicking briefly to the fin that flares at his spine. She nods her understanding. “I'd always favored the sea until I found Loess. An old friend of mine, Aquaria, once welcomed me to her home on Ischia - if I were not so attached to the foothills at the time, I likely would have up and moved in there.”

    Their conversation returns to their mutual intrusion of Tephra and she laughs, nodding her agreement to his offer. “And it would be my pleasure to be escorted,” she responds as they begin to walk side-by-side before throwing a playful side-eye in his direction, “but if whatever Tephran we find is upset with our intrusion, I'm telling them you told me you already lived here.”

    The grin that twists her lips upward remains as they begin their trek further into the volcanic jungle. The humidity clings to her frame, though it is not unwelcome. The warmth seeps into her bones, and for the first time since her relocation to Sylva, Oceane feels a sense of comfort and confidence once more.

    “Where is it you lived before this, Ahti?”




    — @Ahti
    “”
    s | n
    i must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
    and all i ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by
    #7

    "All of us waves are going to be nothing! Isn’t it terrible?"

    There is silence between them; moments of peace between friendly words. The elderly male appreciates it more than he could explain, as it’s been long since he had spoken to a friend. She reminds him of Kyra, even though the desert woman was vastly different in color and build and perhaps even more outgoing, as it was always hard to catch her alone - unless she sought one out. Oceane’s regal posture, softened with a kindness to her soul, is a spectacular match however. Perhaps if autumn canopies were more his thing she might have convinced him. Perhaps if Loess wasn’t such a literal dry spot. Ischia though - he smiles a little. ”It sounds very much like my old home, Atollon. Or perhaps the Islandres are more similar, from what I hear. Before then, there was Sverige, a place called Stockholm and a Zoo with a large lake. That’s what it was called anyway. It seemed to me that the world had been devastated before we occupied it…” he shakes his head. ”Originally there was Kalaallit. Much colder, but equally humid.” He reminisces and compares, leaving out whomever had lived with him back then. There is too much history to share on a walk, he has lived too many lifetimes already to update her in one go. And he doesn’t wish to. Doesn’t need to, because the woman has a kindred soul. Every land he has lived in holds a piece of his mind and heart, pieces he doesn’t need to share to acknowledge their existence. She is similar he suspects, and for that he can only be thankful.

    They joke of intrusion instead, as they walk from the waterfall to the deeper jungle. There is a rise and a slow change in scenery as they go, until the heat comes at them in waves. It is then that he halts, peering through leaves and vines to the lava streams nearby. Already he pulls the damp that clings to the foliage closer to his body, but now his emerald eyes focus on the winged mare. ”I may be susceptible to fire,” he tells her and nods to his slightly more oily fur. ”Water repellent, though.” he smiles a little and contemplates whether to go on and expose himself - and the extent of his aquatic abilities - or if perhaps they could find another route.

    --ahti

    "You are not one wave, you are part of the ocean."

    Photo by Rayofliight Coding by Kyra


    @Oceane




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