• Closed • I Spy With My Ravens Eye

[Noth]

Saun 36, 716

Ruffled and messy feathers crashed into the cold stone as the Avriel leaned back into the wall. His eye twitched uncomfortably for an instance, pulling at the muscle in his cheek, and he slowly skidded down the length of the wall. Events within a city's walls typically took days to reach the outside world, and tended to take even longer to reach the ears of neighboring civilizations. Whilst Etzos was only a few minutes away from the cave, there was no designated service for spreading the most recent news to the outcast, and the only way that he typically learned of events was from the occasional drunkard, or from traveling merchants. The drunkards were typically far too loose-lipped to be of any use, and their slurred words could nearly constitute foreign slang for all the assistance they provided. Meanwhile, the merchants were typically too tight-lipped to provide any information in fear of being assailed by perceived bandits hiding in the bushes. It took the rare cataclysm to make men wish not to drink, and to make merchants lose their natural wariness of being stopped.

The group of men and women that Noth had encountered were coated in ragged clothes, and their eyes spoke of desperation far beyond what was common for those inflicted by poverty. They were grudgingly leaving Etzos behind, and Noth could still remember watching as the family leaders would glance back at their homeland in longing. The children had shrieked, and climbed atop their wagon at the mere sight of the feathered creature, and the drawing of knives among the refugees hadn't escaped his bird-like sight. Once he had spoken to them, they calmed down considerably, and the children crept out from their hiding place to curiously examine the strange abomination before them. It wasn't often that Noth interrupted the daily lives of the citizens of Etzos, and it was even rarer for the monster to show compassion, but something about their state made him question their exodus. The news had stricken him with all the force of a brick, and he had immediately returned to his cavernous home.

Etzos had been attacked. Hundreds were dead. Crimson flowed through the streets in a manner reminiscent of a warzone. Families had been torn asunder. Lives had been ruined with the butchering savagery of beasts from tales of fiction. Death had never been something that had truly bothered the Avriel, and he felt fairly certain that he could watch someone die directly in his path, and his heart would not skip a single beat out of rhythm. However, even he felt some faint empathy for those suffering within the city. As much as he tried to stomp down the feeling into nothingness, he found it impossible, and his stomach gradually knotted within himself as his thoughts formed imagery suiting the descriptions of carnage and desolation. He might have sat there in the darkness of the cave for nearly a break before movement returned to his arms, and motion forced his legs to arise.

The immediate thoughts of many had been that Sirothelle was involved in the slaughter, but the refugees stated that evidence showed it was actually Rhakros. There had always been tension between the city-states, but was it within the realm of possibility that Rhakros could truly control monsters, and release them from the underground tunnels of Etzos? How had they managed to conduct such a feat of stealth without a single guard noticing their arrival? There were only a few answers to his question, and yet both seemed entirely feasible. The Plague Lord ruled from her domain in Rhakros, and the Immortals were known to have power beyond what was normal. Another option seemed to be that guards had noticed, but that the government of Etzos was thoroughly corrupted, and thus inefficient in protecting it's citizens. He had long held suspicions about the true power of the Etzori government, and whilst there had been lingering thoughts of testing it's resolve, they had never risen to the forefront of his mind as heavily as now. The innate desire to be in control had it's own overwhelming influence, and it washed over him as though it were a tidal wave.

His thoughts were interrupted by the slightest rustling outside of the cave's entrance, and the gentle scraping of small stones as they were kicked by the intruder. Noth was hidden within the depths of shadow, and he quickly retrieved his longbow from it's resting place near his side. Deft, and nervous hands notched an arrow against the taut string, and the twilight hybrid scanned the entrance from his hiding place. He anxiously awaited the savage growl that would reveal that the intruder was one of the aforementioned monsters that had plagued Etzos, but no such noise appeared. The twilight hybrid wondered whether it would be able to prevail against the log, and the loose defensive spikes attached, and assumed that they would present no problem to any sentient being. Perhaps Vern could frighten away any trespassers with her loud, and alarming noises.

Worst case scenario; Noth could shoot it.

[Maltruism]

Chanyalla was becoming ever more pressed to stay clear of patrolling Etzori troops. She was not sure exactly what had happened inside the city, for she did not dare try to enter. Her common would surely be recognized as heavy with the Rhakrosian Xanevic accents. She was not an infiltrator, she was really just a scout. But there had been an explosion in the enemy town several trials previous. Remnants of the smoke still hung in the air, and the Etzori military had responded with a huge mustering.

But there had been some rushed training in what passed for jungle in this region. There were none of the vines and dense foliage found this far north to match the stifling growths covering the southeastern quarter of this continent; nor could they match the heat. But the enemy made what effort they could. They'd been rushing maneuvers throughout the forests for the last two weeks. It had begun on the far side of the city, but had worked its way around to the west as the troops were also clearly practicing routines intended to "secure" captured ground and set up base camps.

She recognized the quick-assembly and equally quick breakdown features of such bivouacs, and had sent her message bird south to relay this information and warning. But there was a sense of apprehension as she put several indicators together. With an explosion and fire being the trigger for this apparent attitude of retribution, why were they thinking Rhakros? Didn't that suit Sirothelle's style and tactics better?

While Chanyalla could not claim to be privy to high strategy councils, she was sure there had been nothing different about the attitudes of Rhakrosian troops. No extra levels of alert, no focus on defensive tactics, no increase in toxin production, no subtle altering of music and theater toward patriotic themes. There was nothing suggesting that her home city had any idea that Etzos was mustering for war. And she knew that if they'd been behind whatever had befallen their enemy, they'd be on guard for reaction.

Then there was the fact that she'd been hemmed in once or twice, close enough to hear enemy troops practicing a few phrases of Xanevic. It was also a concern that she'd received no return bird. She feared greatly that her bird had been shot down, and her message intercepted. There was an increase in vigilance with these new troops. Instead of attack techniques, the nearby squads were suddenly focusing on stealth and concealment tactics, as well as trap-laying. It all added up to her presence being suspected, and a subtle network of scouts performing a slow, wide encircling maneuver to catch her.

She had, of course, been raised to think of the Etzori as an aggressive culture, bent on bringing her free city to heel, hateful of Immortals, despite the surprising rumor that there was a shrine to her own Lisirra within those enemy walls. This only added to the curious aspect of this sudden hostility and movement south of thousands of troops. Who was encouraging this aggression? It was surely not Lisirra, she knew that. But there was jealousy between many of the Immortals, she knew that too.

A sound scraped behind her, and she froze. it was fortunate she had not had to move for a short time, as her breathing was not difficult to control. She became one with the ground, slipping back, below the top of an old fallen log, peering back as she tried to penetrate the brush. She saw no soldiers, predators or prey. But she did catch sight of something she'd missed previously. It was understandable, as she'd been rushed to reach this high ground on the western side of the city. But now, there was no mistake, it was a cave.

That was perfect, she knew enough camouflage techniques to disguise the cave's entrance. She approached slowly, silently, but stopped again as she realized the unnaturally formed barrier closing off a section of the cave entrance. It was clearly a crude spike bar, maybe more than one. She could not tell if it was a second and third bar, or if they were just the supports for the one. It was nothing she could not climb through or over. But she'd be exposed and vulnerable as she did it. But vulnerable to what?

Was it man or beast within the dark. She reasoned that the best thing to do was draw any inhabitants out, so she could judge what she was up against. She had nearly exhausted her vial of Slogah oil, which masked human scent so that even an animal could not detect her. She'd shot a squirrel earlier and decided to give it up as bait, laying it near the entrance and then kicking and scraping a few twigs and rocks.

Then she slipped silently back ten yards or so, and watched...

[Noth]

Nervous beads of sweat dripped down the Avriel’s face, and were quickly absorbed by the coat of feathers wrapped around him. It seemed as though whatever was outside had decided against immediately rushing into the cave. Slowly, his fingers began to release the pressure being held upon the longbow. The arrow was kept attached to the string, ready to be fired at a moment’s notice, but in its current position, it would need to be drawn back once more to affect any damage upon a target.

Noth cast a rapid glance behind himself to ensure that there were no shadowy apparitions preparing to assail him. He also made notice of the fact that Vern was still comfortably asleep within her nest, apparently unperturbed by the recent events. That was an oddity, usually she was the first to awaken to any potential predators lingering in the area. It was almost as if though her senses had been dulled, and thus she was unable to awaken herself from the trance that sleep created. That seemed to point once more towards shadowy creatures, but Noth felt almost certain that such a beast would be ruthlessly savage. The intruder had thus far not rushed directly into his trap, and that seemed to hint at the possibility of intelligence, or at the very least pathetic perceptive abilities.

He took a cautious step forward, awaiting an attack at any moment, but when none came, he continued his forward momentum. The twilight hybrid paused at the log, and listened for any sign of ambush, but discovered none. Carefully, he peered over the log, and scanned the perimeter for potential foes. Opposite the log had been lain a fresh squirrel corpse, and it intrigued the hybrid. Could it be a bribe to assist Rhakros in eliminating the people of Etzos, or perhaps it was a warning that he needed to relocate his home lest he end up like the furry forest creature. Either way, it seemed as though he had been provided a free meal, and he could not pass up such an easy luxury.

He gently placed his longbow against the log on his side of the cave, and clasped his knife within his right hand with a death-grip. Once more he scanned the perimeter, but upon finding no abnormalities except for a slight shift in the wind in certain parts of the forest, he vaulted over the log. His actions were abnormally quick; heightened by the potential danger. He scooped up the corpse by it’s frail tail, and quickly hurled it back into the entrance of the cave. There was always the chance that his unnecessary roughness might damage the quality of the meat, but he had long since decided that he would not be subjected to gourmet meals within the confines of the wilderness, and thus was generally apathetic at the loss of imagined tastes.

He turned his head over his shoulder, awaiting the sudden rushing assault, but then quickly hefted himself over the log, and retreated into his cavernous home.

[Maltruism]

Chanyalla saw movement in the cave. It was slow and cautious, as was to be expected from a denizen of the wilds. Even a powerful predator would be loathe to expose its den so near to a city of humans. A large shadow vaulted the spiked log barrier to approach the squirrel offer. With the backdrop of the dark cave mouth behind, it was difficult to discern details, but Chanyalla was surprised to see what resembled, more than anything, an avriel. But there was something asymmetrical about it that made her unsure. The creature, whatever it was, clearly had the wit to scan the outer perimeter of its den, and Chany stayed absolutely still for the duration of its surveillance, it's sinister red eyes passing over her location with no sign of recognition.

It was not until the thing turned around to hop back into the cave that she perceived what it was that seemed abnormal and out of balance. It was an avriel, but it had no left wing! The eyes were a nice touch if the thing truly wanted to look monstrous, but she could think of no reason why it should strive to inspire such. Was it trying to achieve solitude by fostering some legend of a monster in the hills outside the city? In her experience such tactics had the opposite results; bringing squads of soldiers in relentless search-and-destroy missions all arou-...all around the area!

It dawned on her suddenly that this may have been the reason for the very presence of the encircling groups of soldiers she'd been forced to deal with for the last couple of weeks. Maybe they were not aware of her presence after all! And if they were aware of something, maybe she could convince them that it was this avriel that had been the cause of whatever had triggered this increased search.

But there were too many variables to consider. Did the Etzori truly know of this creature already? If so, why do they leave it be? Is it a watch guard for the city, conducting its own surveillance on behalf of her enemies behind the walls? Or do they did not know of it? And what could that indicate? Has it not been here long enough to have been discovered? Is it possibly something more monstrous than she'd first assumed, but something willing to leave the soldiers alone if they did likewise? Was it something she could recruit to her own cause? Was it disinterested in the state of politics between Rhakros and Etzos? Would it possibly allow her to rest inside its den to elude the wandering squads of soldiers? Would it demand some compensation for this favor? Did she have anything it would want? Did it even possess sufficient intelligence to understand such a proposal?

She needed more information. She needed to get closer and study it if she could. She took several bits and cut a densely leafed branch from a bush behind her, doing her best to cut it flush with the stalk. She then applied some coloring to the newly exposed spot on the stalk to hide the cutting. She knew that even such a small dot of new color in a forest was enough to provoke a search for a concealed enemy. She'd found enemies herself in the past with nothing more to go on than that.

Inching herself toward the cave, and stopping frequently to let the branch be accepted as a normal feature of the area, she made steady progress. She knew that if the inhabitant of that cave was as meticulous as herself, it might still notice such a subtle change in the scenery. But she had no choice.

She eventually reached the cave's mouth. If the creature inside had noticed her approach, it gave no sign. What she needed to do now was establish an accepted cover position. This was done the same way. She would very slowly introduce the leafy cover into the features of what the creature would see if it looked out. Initially, there would be just the slightest degree of leafy intrusion on a corner of the cave's opening. She would then spend a few bits slowly adding more and more of the cover, in increments that would hopefully go unnoticed.

Everything seemed to be going well until she heard distant sounds of a patrol. The fact that they were talking loudly enough to be heard here suggested they were not taking their duty very seriously, but she was not going to give them cause to change their level of alert. She took several bits to listen, until it became apparent that the patrol was getting further away.

She very nearly let out a sigh of relief, but caught herself before making such a mistake. Something had changed in the interim though. She smelled something that had no been present before. It had an avian smell to it and she made every effort not to let her concern cause a fear sweat that would expose her own scent. He Slogah oil had covered her scent up til now, and it would be maddening to surrender this advantage at the last moment.

Bits passed without event and she began to calm. But then a slight crunch of foliage just inches from her face renewed her apprehension. She dared not look up, but could "feel" eyes on her. Suddenly something smacked the back of her head and she knew the gig was up. She whirled into action, rolling and pulling her knife to counter attack her assailant. Her immediate strategy against a human-sized enemy, while in a prone position herself, was to hamstring the enemy and then swiftly put enough of a gap between her enemy and herself to make a quick reassessment of how to engage the now-crippled enemy.

She reached for where she felt the leg of her enemy must be, but heard oddly light movement and found nothing to slice into other than her own leafy cover. She looked up in adrenaline-fueled frenzy to find...a goose! Even as she the comical element of such an unexpected confrontation struck her emotions, the thing let out a freakishly intimidating howl, and she knew she was fully exposed to whatever else was in the cave. She jumped to her feet, knife in hand, ready to use the log barrier against whatever came at her from within the darkness.

[Noth]

It didn’t take a very long time for the Avriel to begin scraping together any scraps of wood remaining within his shelter for the creation of a fire. He had already decided that whatever had left the message had likely dispersed back into the woods, and that it was unlikely they would reveal themselves to him, and then proceed to attack him. That would be the equivalent of giving someone a warning that you were going to be mugging them as soon as they stepped into a back alleyway. Despite that, Noth had no intention of being caught unawares, and so he positioned himself to be facing the entrance to the cave at all times. He bent over, and gripped a few shards of wood that had managed to escape incineration the last time that he had worked up a fire within the confines of the stony and cavernous structure, and quickly hurled them together with another set of gathered resources. It was not an uncommon occurrence for the hybrid to fashion together a fire within his home, and the rocky floor helped to prevent any potential spread in the fire. The only truly difficult thing about the entire process was that occasionally the wind would blow smoke back into the cave, and make it somewhat difficult to breathe.

Nimble fingers flickered around rapidly as the creature used its’ available tools to spark a flame upon the wooden remnants. He blew gentle air upon the starving fire, and discerned the wind as it vanished into its’ maw. It would take several moments until the fire had grown to a sufficient height so as to be used for cooking, and thus the Avriel took to skinning the morbid squirrel corpse. He had done such a thing a few times in the past, but his workmanship was shoddy, and much of the flesh was stripped during the process, and difficult to cook afterwards to an effective manner. It was an inconvenience at worst, however, and the spare flesh could always be put into some manner of trap to bring him his next meal.

His mind wandered in a seemingly aimless fashion as he hacked away at the body with his knife, tearing away loose strips of hide with every motion. He had been raised to be a citizen of the Etzori, but he was very clearly not one any longer. He owed them nothing, and yet was it wrong of him to show biased partiality towards them? Their government had been seemingly inefficient at dealing with the threat to its’ people, but could he provide any better response than the one that they had given? His mind went through the motions once more as he finished stripping the hide from the admittedly small prize. That raised more questions: Was the squirrel to be taken as a gift, or as a warning? He considered for a brief interval that it might have been poisoned, but that seemed highly doubtful. A wild animal could just as easily have been scouring the woods for a meal, and happened upon the fresh kill.

Whatever had left the gift at his proverbial door had known of his presence. It was not as if though the Etzori people were completely unaware of the twilight creature dwelling on the outskirts of their territory, but they had generally left him be, and the few that he had encountered had been treated with forced neutrality. That wasn’t to say that many didn’t consider him to be some skulking monster hidden within his darkened lair, and in some ways that viewpoint wasn’t entirely false. He was a murderer, and he was incredibly cruel at times, but he was clever enough to know when to act, and when to deceive with the promises of friendship and good cheer. Only the drunk and the foolish thought that he was a true monster, and the others could be convinced that he was simply a peaceable hermit or an outcast.

His eyes scanned the entrance once more for any sign of intrusion, but he was not perceptive enough to pick up on the loose pieces of foliage gradually creeping into his view. They had not done much to change the way that the wind flowed, and that was one of the primary indicators that he had always used to search for intruders. As he watched, he thought he heard the faintest echoes of voices speaking, but they vanished almost as quickly as they came. Could it be that the rustling of the leaves in the wind was forming something akin to whispers? He was unsure, but even if it were conversation, it had clearly gone beyond his range of hearing, and thus was well away from his encampment. A paranoid hand clenched onto his bloody knife with a slightly harsher grip, and the twilight hybrid winced as he noticed that the action simply made the feathers upon his hand slightly messier with crimson liquid.

It was at this moment that Vern awoke from her nap, and began to tread with a determined gait towards the entrance of the cave. It was not unusual for the bird to step outside in search of an easy meal, but it was uncharacteristic for her to be without caution in her actions. He released the knife, and allowed it to clatter gently to the ground. His groping hands took hold of the longbow near him, splashing loose specks of blood upon the wood, and the creature quickly wiped the remainder onto the cave wall beside him.

He notched an arrow to the taut string, and began to draw it back to about half-draw. Vern fluttered forward in a rapid manner, smashing into something within the confines of the foliage just outside of the cave, and the hybrid saw the glittering glow of a knife as it lashed out through the leaves. Immediately, the bird let out her abnormally horrific noise, and sprinted back to a hiding place within the shadows of the cave. He could clearly see the girl now that she had exposed herself, and he aimed the arrow towards her torso with remarkable focus. He had wielded the longbow on many hunts, and had managed to down many animals with it, but he was by no means an expert. He had missed far more arrows than he had managed to hit, but she was unaware of that fact.

“Raise your hands, and step inside. Be slow, lest I pierce your heart.” He layered his voice with every ounce of ferocity that he can manage, and it became a growling and savage noise.

[Maltruism]

It was not what Chanyalla expected, but was somewhat of a relief that she was dealing with a rational being, and not some feral monstrosity. She sagged just barely for a moment than stood straight, displayed the dagger to her captor and tossed it in a subdued clatter on the hard-packed dirt and stone floor.

"So, not the beast I was worried you might be. And I suppose if you were a loyal Etzorian, you'd just shoot me...Nice bird by the way." she said, trying to adopt a disarming smile. The red eyes in the dark were alarming, but did not affect her too much since she'd seen them already. "Is it possible that you'd just like to be sure that I'm no threat to you? I can promise you I have no interest in you unless you're part of the army here. And even then, I'm not an assassin or anything. Just a scout, wondering what the big build up is about. It looks like it's focused toward my home town, Rhakros."

She took a few steps further inside as she spoke; her common fairly heavily accented with Xanevic highlights. There was far too much distance between them for her to consider making some charge at her adversary, but she at least wanted to be away from where she could be seen from outside. As a diplomatic precaution, she raised her hands, moving more laterally than directly toward the figure with the long bow. "May I sit here then? You'd feel better with me off my feet, yes?" She was already beginning to crouch as she spoke and flopped with her back against the rough wall.

She didn't wait for him to object. "Right here okay? I really just want to be away from the door." She hoped that using that word might present her viewing his cave as a genuine housing unit. Every little bit of flattery could help. "There's troops nearby, and they will shoot me on sight. I suppose if they're planning to attack my home, it makes sense they'd want to silence me. And it sure looks like that's what they have in mind. I swear, it's like every time some kid gets the sniffles, they blame Rhakros."

She couldn't tell if her approach was having any effect on the dark figure across the cave from her. She was trying to come off as a loyal soldier just doing her job, safeguarding her misunderstood home from over-zealous antagonists. But it was impossible to tell if her captor's silence was due to him considering her words, or if he was just about to order her to shut up. She didn't want to push it, but judging by the mustering of enemy troops, there wasn't much time to send a warning.

She tried to inject a bit of desperation into her voice, "Look, I don't know if you are just trying to stay neutral in this, but keeping me here is really taking Etzos' side. I don't deny there's standing hostility between our cities, but we haven't done anything new to antagonize them. They even have a shrine to my Queen! Did you know that? I saw that explosion the other trial. I know you probably have no reason to believe me, but we were not behind that. I'd have known. I'd have been told."

She had a couple of other approaches to consider, but decided to wait for some indication of what his attitude was about the whole situation.

[Noth]

It was easy enough not to display any fearful emotions to any observer. The coat of feathers that wrapped tightly around his body provided a decent shield into those who would read his body language, and any nervous sweat that beaded down his skin was simply absorbed. His eyes gleamed a crimson red, and most individuals disliked their hue enough to avoid glaring into his soul through them. Indeed, on the outside, Noth appeared to be a calm and rational monstrosity prepared to do whatever needed to be done in defense of himself and his home. The bow remained set within the hands of a capable warrior who could release the taut string for only a moment, and it would spell the death of the intruder.

What could not be seen was far more intriguing than what could be observed. Within his skull, Noth’s mind was a torrent of vibrant emotions and questions, each one more intense than the previous. He felt minor fear at the intrusion into his home, and questioned why the woman had decided to enter his place of residence. Had she been the one to place the squirrel? Had it not been a message, but instead bait? Was she a soldier sent to kill the creature that resided in the dark? When the dagger fell to the ground with the slightest metallic clang, Noth nearly shot her directly in the torso. His grip adjusted in an incredibly slow manner so as not to give the impression of inexperience to the woman, and gradually the string began to loosen in power as his arm muscles began to ache with the tension.

The woman mentioned that he had not been monster she was expecting, and that raised the question once more of whether she had been dispatched to eliminate a sighted monster. Her compliment on Vern was duly noted, but utterly irrelevant to the situation, and her smile disarmed his suspense as well as winking at a bear makes it stop charging. Her next few sentences did dispel some of his fear and apprehension, and he wondered if she recognized that her life hung upon each word. She was a scout, and even the mention of being a part of the Etzori army seemed to reveal her town of origin, but the word still slid into the air between them: Rhakros.

She stepped further into the home, her hands raised in a lateral fashion so as not to offend any harsh responses from the twilight hybrid, and he acquiesced when she offered to sit, his head nodding approval, and the tension of the bow releasing fully. The arrow was still nocked upon the string, and ready to fire in a moment’s notice, but Noth had questions that a corpse could not easily answer. His eyes cast towards the door for the briefest interval before flickering back to her form. The mention of soldiers roaming around the outskirts was somewhat alarming, though he wasn’t entirely certain whether they would harm him. He was an outcast, and though his appearance was definitely frightening, he was by no means truly an animal. Would the battle-hungry Etzori recognize him as a person, or would they be thirsty for spilled blood of any form? By all means, he was residing in the land of his childhood, and yet he was still a foreigner in the eyes of many.

The creeping warning of desperation seemed to plague her voice, as though cast upon her by her own queen, and she spoke of being restrained. If he forcibly kept her with him within the confines of his home, she would be his prisoner, and thus he would side with the Etzori in their conflict against Rhakros. However, if he were discovered within the cave with her, would they truly believe that he was simply arresting a Rhakrosian spy, or would they believe him a co-conspirator? Treason was a fickle animal, and the Tower would be glad to rid themselves of a mutt.

She stated that the Rhakrosians had done nothing new to antagonize the Etzori, and that aroused a modicum of interest and curiosity. He had wondered about the attack ever since he had learned of it, and had questioned why Rhakros would assail the Etzori with the methods that they had used. If she was telling the truth, and not lying through her teeth, then it would reveal much to him about the current situation.

His voice raised from his throat as though it had been concealed there for quite some time. “I shall make you an offer, Rhakrosian. You are hiding from the patrols outside, and I shall keep you concealed from them until night falls, but in exchange I seek knowledge of all that you know.” He was inquisitive, and she had answers to questions that he simply needed to know. “Of course, if you deny my offer, then you will be prey to the patrols outside, and I fear for your chances of survival.” He snickered softly under his breath, and inserted layers of menace into his voice. “If you accept my offer, and then betray my hospitality, then you shall simply have to suffer my companions.” It was true that he had no companions, and no formal training in the art of deception, but he hoped his pure intimidation and natural physicality would keep her from detecting his lie.

“I am Noth. Who are you? Why are you here?”

[Maltruism]

Anger flashed in Chanyalla's eyes and she began to shift into a position that would allow her to spring to her feet in response. She caught herself as his snicker heralded a menace of the unknown darkness extending back into the cave. She sat back, her face blanking with cold resignation, and met his proposal with defiance.

"Well...Noth...You have to know that I can not accept such terms, even to save my life. Do you intend to torture me?" she actually seemed amused. "Consider to whom to speak, and from where I hail, Noth. I am already fitted with a toxic pellet to prevent enduring such an ordeal. I am a scout of Rhakros Noth; duty bound to give my life before betraying the city of my birth. I will not bore you with debates over the viability of our culture. I had assumed that being a freak,..." she spat the word in contempt, "...you would know how it is to have a world that makes no effort to know you, still have the arrogant self-righteousness to sit in judgment of you. But I guess I was wrong."

She now took to her feet in spite of the bow in his hand. But she made no effort to approach him, standing proudly instead, arms folded. "So kill me then. That much IS your right if you feel obliged or indebted to this city. I am a soldier, as are those men out there. I hold no additional animosity towards them for doing their duty. But I will still kill them all the same given the opportunity. It is game I play with them, and they with me. A game whose rules we have both accepted, and now must abide by. A game which risks the same thing as an ante as it awards for a victory - freedom for my people!"

Her pose took on an assessing quality as her eyes narrowed in his direction, "But you, you are no soldier. So I have no duty against you, nor obligation on your behalf. I mean no criticism by this. It is a choice we make. You have made yours; I have made mine. And I knew the risk I would take when meeting even plain folk of a hostile city. But we have many Avriel in Rhakros; more than they have in Etzos, I can tell you that!"

Now an odd look of intense anxiety melded into the pride and defiance in her expression, "But there is now some new player, Noth. One that ignores the honorable rules of warriors. One that tries to see that my city gets the blame for an attack we have not made." Her eyes suddenly flared as intimidating as his own with the purity of her conviction. And she stepped closer, seemingly heedless of the deadly weapon he held, her voice a taunting hiss.

"Have you ever had that happen to you, Noth? That some brat causes damage and does not own up to it? Or worse yet, puts the blame on you? And because of who and what you are, those who should make effort to investigate the truth simply accept the face of these lies and bring undeserved wrath down upon you from those that might have been your friends? Even going so far as to indict you further for not owning up to it?"

Her voice rose slowly as she spoke, but she held it down before it might give away her presence. She began to pace, her arms gesturing angrily as her eyes looked to events long gone, "And how they laughed, the little bastards! Shielded by their privilege!" she whirled around angrily, a new conviction on her face, "You want my secrets then, Noth? I killed them! I was only ten arcs old and I hunted them down and murdered them! But my culture did not see that resolve wasted in imprisonment. They trained me! They shouted down the enablers of these brats and elevated me instead! Elevated me to be an agent of my city's protection."

"So just forget any notion that I'm going to tell you all I know. I will die first!" She actually turned to go take her original place. Then she stopped and started to chuckle. It had all the signs of escalating into a storm of laughter, but she cut herself off with a shake of her head, muttering, "Yes...my training...all my training, and I am exposed by a goose!" She sat down still snickering. "So ask me your questions Noth. I do not see you as my enemy. But I will decide which ones I will answer. And you will decide whether or not to kill me. Fair enough?"

[Noth]

Noth took heed of the flicker of defiant anger that seemed to flash in the woman’s eyes, and he felt his fingers tighten around the string as though prepared to execute her on the spot. The menace that he had whispered into his voice seemed to have been intimidation enough however, and as she leaned back into a sitting position, the string was left limp once more. The defiance left her posture, but her voice was still tinted with it, and even as she uttered his name for the first time, he felt the pangs of verbal assault. She denied his proposition almost immediately, and inquired as to whether he intended to torture her for her knowledge. He hadn’t considered it, but depending on what the information might have been, its’ value might have warranted the loss of a finger or two.

The mention of a toxic pellet unnerved the Avriel far more than it was intended to have done, and he cast a momentary glance at the skinned squirrel corpse laying not far from the still burning fire, wondering whether she had attempted to eliminate him with one of the famed Rhakrosian toxins. She seemed unafraid of the prospect of torture, and spoke of owing a debt of duty to the city of her birth. He couldn’t quite understand that notion, but he decided that it was an inopportune time to compare his beliefs with her own, and thus silenced his mind to listen to her emotional plea. Her next words were far more accusatory, and the mention of being a freak arose a surprising amount of anger within the hybrid. He had referred to himself as a monster for quite some time, but it felt different being told by someone else that he fit the description of an abomination, and the temptation arose to remove her disrespectful tongue from her mouth before she might utter another word.

Restraint kept him from puncturing her lung with the deadly missile, but his fingers did tense upon the string nonetheless. She stood, and he felt the urge to back away from her verbal venom, but he held his ground for fear of seeming weak before the intruder. She spoke of the wily game played between soldiers of rival cities, and of the dangerous rules that entrapped them all. Noth still felt little desire to side with the people of any city in the conflict, but he recognized that she would not know that. Pride seemed to play across her face as she continued to speak, mentioning the introduction of a new player that ignored the rules of war. The spy was foolish in that she revealed things to him whilst in the heat of anger, but he decided not to intervene in the hopes that she might grant him more knowledge.

Her speech seemed to shift from the ideals of duty and honor, and more towards personal experience as she tried to make an emotional appeal to the twilight hybrid. The only time that he had ever felt the way that she felt was when he had been expelled from his people simply for having mixed blood. That segregation and prejudice had haunted him throughout his entire life, and had gradually led him to hate the beings that he would otherwise have called brethren. He could understand the spy in that regard far more than he could in any speech of duty, but it was not until she admitted to murder that the tension in his hands vanished. She had killed to silence those that would oppress her, and Noth could understand that sentiment far more than any living creature could ever understand.

She would answer his questions if she decided to do so, and he would kill her if he decided it was time. It was a fair enough trade, and he felt a semblance of familiarity with the spy over her confession. Finally, he spoke, his voice having lost its’ menace and taken on a far more somber sound, “I hold no loyalty to Etzos, nor to any other city upon the whole of Idalos.” He paused for a moment before adding, “We aren’t enemies, but I would hold your tongue before you called someone a freak. Despite that, I can understand your anger against those that would… presume your personality, and your right to exist. I am despised by the Avriel for the blood that flows through my veins, and that hate flows both ways.”

“My adoptive father was slain at my hands for imprisoning me within my own home for several years, but he never acted in a cruel way towards me. That is my reason for abandoning Etzos, and living within this dark cavern for fear of being hunted by his sons.” The arrow was calmly removed from the taut string, and tossed gently upon the ground near the remainder. “You may stay for as long as you need, and I agree to your terms. My first question is a simple one: What is your name?”

[Maltruism]

She sat back, her eyes narrowed as she assessed the one-winged figure across from her. She found his reference to being imprisoned by his own father, as something not cruel, puzzling. But she realized he had shared a secret similar to the one she had. She did not want to give away that she had only divulged this information out of frustration. It had simply slipped out in her anger. But this Noth, this half-bred member of a race known for impulsive belligerence, had given his up calmly.

She suddenly felt as if she could trust him to hide her from any Etzori patrols. With this sudden ease of heart came a guilt at her use of that hurtful term. Her ensuing response was the truth, but now it felt pitifully lacking in justification. She hung her head at half-mast, her rich Xanevic accent unable to hide a healthy measure of shame, "I'm sorry Noth. I only said it to let you know that I know how you feel to bear the brunt of unchecked prejudice." her face turned up now, barely meeting his eyes, "But I think I don't really know this feeling to the extent you do...Please, forgive me. I am named Chanyalla. I am a Rhakrian, born and bred."

And the questions began. Chanyalla did not hesitate to answer where there was no threat of strategic betrayal, though she waited a moment to assess what tactical detriment an enemy could gain from each question before she did. But Noth did not seem to be after anything of the sort. Yes, he asked if she was alone, but not how many others had started north with her. He asked how long she'd been stationed here, but nothing of what she'd found. He asked if she liked her work, but not if her feelings were based on any political issues.

He asked about the avriel in Rhakros, how they were treated, how they treated others. He did not appear to take offense at her reluctance to answer on this subject, for her eventual replies were not complimentary on the race as a whole. She had been about to express her gratitude that fate had found Syroa elsewhere for the better part of the last cycle, but caught herself, shifting instead to praise of Lissira, whose program of culling the weak and immunizing the faithful through tribulation had always found understanding in Chanyalla's heart. She did not mention that Lissira too had been absent of late.

This was all settled within an abundance of small talk. But the goose interrupted the scene, waddling up to Noth in a strangely distressed manner. A moment later Chanyalla cursed her lapse in awareness. There was another patrol heading their way, much closer than last time. "Can we possibly move further back into your cave, Noth?"

His response was oddly reluctant. She strained her eyes into the blackness, realizing she could not confirm the existence of its end. She turned back to him, "Have you not ever checked out its depths, Noth?" The soldiers were close enough now that she thought they must surely have seen the cave. She did not know if Noth had some arrangements with them, but she was no longer sure of his neutrality.

She decided that she had nothing to gain by remaining in the front chamber. She muted her voice to a low murmur, "Well, I'm going to get out of sight." she was curious if he'd try to stop her, thinking that he'd only do it if he was a loyal Etzori after all.