"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
03-04-2022, 08:47 PM (This post was last modified: 03-04-2022, 08:49 PM by Tarian.)
Tarian had blinked and then, somehow, Starros and Areane were of a similar age that he had been when he had bid family farewell on the Pass. He had barely passed his second year when he had decided to make his way into the world, and as he watched the twins he shared with Altissima over the last few days, it made him all the more determined that they would venture into Tephra. The pair had spoken about the move several times, and some time before, had begun the migration towards the West, venturing over what used to be the South.
Then they had lingered on the border of the kingdom until winter had set in, and though there was a part of him that had hesitated over his old loyalties to a kingdom and its Queens that were gone, the former Champion of Loess had finally decided it was time to move on. His family couldn’t stay in this stagnant state forever; with winter finally arriving and realizing that his children were growing so quickly without the protection of a kingdom, he knew that the time had come to change that.
He had spent his entire life in kingdom service, and though he would have abandoned it if Altissima asked, she hadn’t. So they had decided on a place that would be warm, where they could both bask in the warmer temperatures and not become so reliant on hot water springs during the colder seasons. ”Ready?” he murmurs to her one frosty morning, finally ready to make the move official, looking to his mate - watching her color-changing gaze - for any indication of hesitation.
Perhaps it was because of his own that he went searching for it on her lovely face. The last time he had done this, Tarian had only been seeking a place for himself. He had landed in Loess with the knowledge that if he was refused a place there, there was most likely a bachelor band or another place that would have taken advantage of his decade of fighting experience. Before that, it had been the Guard and Tarian had been too angry to care what would happen if they didn’t accept him.
Now it is him and Altissima, Starros, and Areane, and though he tries to conceal his worries about what will happen if Tephra were to turn them away, Tarian begins to stretch out his wide wings and closes them again (the third time since the sun rose), mentally chiding himself since their journey through the dense jungle will be on hoof. They could fly over Tephra but finding a place to land would be another thing. The twins had ventured off earlier, and the only thing to do now was to actually go; the last thing Tarian needed now was Altissima's nod of approval (and perhaps a little reassurance) and they could be off.
Altissima laughs softly when Tarian asks her if she’s ready and then as he stretches his wings yet again - his nerves and worries as plain as the dark spots on her face. She reaches out to him without even consciously thinking to do so, tugging on his mane. “You were an Alliance participant and Champion of an entire kingdom, and yet it’s walking through a jungle that makes you nervous?” Teasing him is something they had done with one another long before anything softer existed between them. There aren’t the same barbs as there once were, of course, but that just makes it all the more comforting.
She is eager to move on, to relax in the heat that she has grown to love and prefer. No snow will fall here this winter, unless some cruel act of fate occurs, and she wouldn’t mind leaving all thoughts of frost and chill behind.
Her own wings are hidden for now, leaving her blue-tinted sides unadorned as her attention turns to Tephra. “I’ve spent a little bit of time here and the neighbouring islands.” She tells him, even though this is something she has already shared. Idle chatter won’t change the fact that they are here because the kingdom he devoted his life to had been swallowed up by the sea, but it can distract him a little bit as they take their first steps into Tephra. “They have a healing waterfall that would've taken care of that leg of yours in an instant, you know.” But then - he wouldn't have been able to be so stubborn and stoic about it bothering him.
Borders have never mattered very much to Altissima, who always had a wandering heart and never any interest in causing trouble - so it never seemed to be much of a problem. She’ll be a little more conspicuous this time, though, with Tarian by her side and two nearly-grown children - though she doesn’t anticipate they’ll have any troubles being allowed to settle here.
Tarian - the Alliance warrior, former Champion of Loess (as Altissima so sagely reminds him) - steadies under her touch. The playful tug on his pale mane calls him away from his worries, and for a moment, Tarian just loses himself in the lovely shade of her violet eyes. What was there to worry about, truly? Even if this attempt to Tephra failed (though he wants it for his family), so long as Altissima was beside him, what was there really to worry for?
His blue eyes meet hers and when Tarian smiles at her, even the creases at the corners of his eyes lift in happiness. ”Who knows what kind of beasts roam in there,” he banters back to her, falling back into their old pattern. Speaking of the Alliance, the gray pegasus tosses his noble head up and back, finally ready to be off. ”Have I ever mentioned the crocodile I faced during the Alliance?” Tarian teases her, knowing full well she had.
Most likely a thousand times, since it was a story he often told to their twins.
And then they are off, crossing the kingdom border into Tephra, venturing deeper into the jungle that Tarian occasionally peers at. It’s been years since he has seen a place with such lush vegetation, and his mate was right; it was blissfully, wonderfully warm. Altissima continues to speak - mentioning that she had lived here once and even traveled to the nearby islands - to which the former Loessian listens quietly. One silver ear flicks in one direction while he keeps looking forward on the trail ahead that winds through the dense vegetation. Elephant ear ferns, orchids, and what the vines don't cover, there are mosses and even more ferns.
Altissima's mention of a healing waterfall sounds intriguing (and if he admits it, rather convenient). There had been no such thing in Loess, and though the place that he had been born to had boasted of a magical healing pool, its powers were sporadic and never guaranteed. As parents of adolescents, Tarian considered it only a matter of time before one of them returned home with an injury. This is just one more thing that convinces the silver pegasus that Tephra is the most suitable place for them. "Think they have hot springs?" he wonders aloud to his fellow wanderer (and trying to hide a rather devilish glint in his blue eyes), knowing that she had shared his appreciation for them in Loess.
It would be just one more thing that would make this place feel almost like home.
But as he gazes back to Altissima over his winged shoulders, Tarian knows that he has already found that. He smiles, content in that knowledge, before he glances around again, searching for signs of a diplomat or kingdom official or its rulers. For anyone who might provide them direction towards the answers they were seeking; the permission that the former warrior needed to allow his family to finally settle.
03-14-2022, 09:39 PM (This post was last modified: 03-15-2022, 06:10 AM by Casimira.)
CASIMIRA
dragon-shifting daughter of ashhal and ryatah
When Casimira wanders Tephra, it is not so much to patrol the borders as it is her feeding into the knot of anxiety that sits in her chest when she tries to rest. Her fear of being deemed a failure is nearly all consuming, and it is when she grows still that the fear is at its loudest. She begins to worry that she will miss something—the invisible enemies at the border that her dreams have conjured: fire once again raining from the sky, of oceans rising so high they swallow the volcano whole, or lightning striking into the heart of an angel.
She caves into this and she winds her way along familiar paths and new ones, following lava fields and coastlines, threading herself through the jungle and between floral underbrush. Every day she walks enough in hopes that the tiredness in her muscles and bones would also quiet her ever-racing mind, and yet, it never does. She remains spun tight, even if the worry never makes it beyond the pale, ice-blue of her eyes, locked behind them as if it is fogged glass.
The gray pegasus stallion is the first that she sees, and for a moment her heart leaps into her throat—the gray and the wings transforming themselves into a different shape, a different face.
Once she registers his features, though, and realizes that he is not who she had thought, she has to fight the humiliation that blossoms like a fresh wound across her face.
It had been stupid to extend an open invitation to her father.
It had been even stupider to think for even a split second that he would actually come.
Quickly she takes in the mare behind him, and she can only hope that the smile she offers them is not as forced as it feels. It was rare for her to be caught off guard, and she was fighting to find her footing again. “Hello there,” she manages, and now that her pulse has settled the lines of her face relax just slightly. “Are you looking for someone?” It still has never occurred to her that newcomers and visitors might be specifically looking for her.
Tarian had told her about the crocodile that he fought - and she still only half believed him about that being real. So says the way her warm violet eyes roll when he brings it up again. Starros and Areane aren’t around to be fascinated with the idea. Although Altissima knew that Beqanna was full of magic, shapeshifting into other creatures was something she had little experience in witnessing.
How that was any less realistic than her ability to bend and shape light, or Areane animating rocks and sticks, she couldn’t say but it just was.
The mention of hot springs encourages a soft chuckle from her - the glint in his eyes matched with warmth in her own as she continues to follow him. Altissima doesn’t point out that in this sticky, humid air a hot spring would likely be more of a torture than a pleasure (no matter how fond of heat she was).
And she cannot help the entertained smile that tugs at the corner of her mouth when she catches Tarian looking around. Checking for threats, or simply hoping that they’d find someone they could talk to about staying? That mindset is not something she really understands - for Altissima, permission isn’t needed for her to begin thinking of this as their home. They could stay here until someone told them otherwise.
So when they’re approached by a pale mare, and asked if they’re looking for someone, it doesn’t occur to her to say they’re looking for the ruler to see if they can stay here. The smile that Altissima offers is nothing like the warm ones shared with Tarian in private - but she is trying to be friendly, and eager to ignore thinking about how she suddenly doesn’t remember the last time she spoke to someone outside of her family. Maybe it would make more sense to allow Tarian, with his experience in living in kingdoms, take the lead but that doesn't really occur to her either.
She steps forward to stand beside Tarian as she speaks, close enough that the feathers of his wing just brush against her blue-tinted sides. “We’re actually looking for somewhere for our family to live. We’re from Loess.” There’s no need to elaborate, she’s sure - considering how close Tephra is now to being an island. “I’m Altissima, and this is Tarian.”
04-04-2022, 06:23 PM (This post was last modified: 04-04-2022, 06:24 PM by Tarian.)
Though much is taken, much abides; and though we are not now that strength which in old days moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are.
Tarian’s drive to seek out the Tephran royals stemmed from another life. He had been born into a world that had been structured, and the gray pegasus had known his role almost immediately from birth. Had his home not disappeared, he would have been Guardian of it one day, just as his grandsire and so many of his forefathers had been. That kingdom is gone but the lessons instilled in Tarian from his childhood still (stubbornly) remain.
He would seek permission to settle here, just as he had when he first landed in Loess, and just as he had done when he sought a rank in the Guard.
But he knows so little of Tephra. Tarian had the benefit of time when he first came to Beqanna, and he had used it to learn what he could of the current state of politics and leaders of each realm. He had the advantage of a physical description of Lady Lepis the last time he had done this; he is only aware of the names associated with this place - Savior and Casimira - and that the warmth of this jungle suited his family.
When the slender form of a silver mare approaches them, he doesn’t know that she is the one they are searching for.
The pegasus only knows that he is relieved that they had found a Tephran, even if he doesn’t understand the strange expression that passes across her face, a flicker that is there and then gone. His blue eyes glance briefly to Altissima beside him and the former Loessian is quiet as she speaks, only nodding his head in polite greeting at the mention of his name. "Perhaps you might help us," Tarian asks, a lifetime of military service prompting him to be as efficient as possible, as he glances back to the other female. His mate has already explained their purpose for being here, and they aren't familiar with Tephra. What might take them hours could be made much shorter with help from a resident.
"Do you know where we could find Casimira or Savior?"
She is grateful that they appear to be friendly. After the sudden surge in her heartbeat when she had mistaken the man as her father she is unsure if she would have been able to maintain a pleasant demeanor had it turned out they were here with the intent of causing trouble. That wasn’t something that happened often in Tephra, but the memories of a war-torn volcanic kingdom had impressed themselves into her mind, following her across lifetimes.
It’s why when the mare says they are from Loess that there is a moment—so brief it is unlikely they noticed, the glacial hue of her eyes serving as a shield to her true feelings—that suspicion threatens to steal the welcoming smile from her face. Loess has not been an issue for the kingdom for some time, but as far as Casimira knew, things were never exactly mended, either. Oceane had been a queen that mostly kept to herself, and Tephra leaders—save for Gale, though he never wreaked havoc in the name of the kingdom, exactly—did the same.
And now it rests beneath the sea, serving only as a landbridge between Tephra and the mainland.
She knows, though, that it could have just as easily been Tephra. That it is only by chance that the waters had stopped rising when they did, that the next earthquake could be what it takes to submerge them right alongside the southern kingdom, and so she does not take Tephra’s survival as any kind of sign that it was karma for Loess’s transgressions years ago.
It was luck, a slippery thing beyond anyone’s control, and something everyone runs out of eventually.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Altissima, Tarian,” she replies with the return of a genuine smile, nodding her head to each in turn. Her gaze swings to the stallion, then, laughter brightening her eyes and caressing the words that lilt from her tongue, “You found them. Well, one of us, I suppose. I’m Casimira.” One-half of the partnership that leads the volcanic kingdom, and while sometimes she wishes that Savior was with her more often when she stumbled across newcomers, it is for selfish reasons only. She does not mind handling kingdom duties, knows that his tie to Tephra goes beyond an intangible crown, and it’s why he is so often lost in the jungle instead. No, she wants him here only because she misses him, because her chest aches when they are apart, and to hear another speak his name sparks a longing behind her ribs so strong she almost turns to go, to leave them to discover the kingdom for themselves.
But she does not. She keeps herself rooted before them, the smile still easy on her lips, the pale blue of her eyes still watching them curiously. “You are welcome to stay in Tephra for as long as you’d like. I could not imagine losing my home in the way that you all did…” she trails off, a frown marring her face. “There was another here not long ago also in search of her family after the flooding. Oceane’s daughter, Lillibet. I am not sure if she ever found them,” she finishes softly. She looks back to each of them, her voice daring to lilt with hope, “Perhaps either of you know the fate of her parents?”
Although there had been little doubt to Altissima that they would be allowed to stay, there is still relief in getting confirmation over that fact. She can see why Tarian’s plan of asking saved trouble further down the line. At least now they knew for sure, and would not need to wait for the day when they might be told otherwise.
It helps add some more genuine warmth to her expression, her eyes becoming a brighter shade of violet with the subtle shift in her mood. “Thank you.”
Casimira goes on, explaining that another from Loess had come to Tephra. In this, Altissima defers to Tarian, her gaze shifting to him. She didn't doubt that he would want to find the other members of Loess, but whether he had heard anything in particular since they became wanderers, she was not sure.
The names are familiar to her, but that is where her knowledge of them ends. She never had much interest in keeping track of the whereabouts of the other citizens of Loess. It was hard enough sometimes just keeping track of their two children as they grew up. And now with the members of Loess and its territories scattered across Beqanna, or lost to the sea, finding a single pair of them seemed an impossible task.
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