Welcome to Gaia! ::

:::her heart fluttered, as though she had heard what she wanted to hear anyway. But she had seen this sort of thing coming. She didn't expect it to be easy, after all. But it was easy to get her hopes up.:::

Of course... where was I? I believe it was the story about 'Neek's taming of the styphike for his lover'...?

:::Kara took her drink and sat down, then cleared her throat:::

It all began when Ani-sa wandered too closely to the edge of Terra, where the crops waver and the mikies begin to burrow freely in the ground. There she saw a glimpse of the great Styphike galloping through the dessert. It could easily have killed her if it chose to...but it did not, and as a result she became enamored with its power and grace. She told the rest of us all about it, and from that point on could not stop thinking of it.

From it's head to its hooves, twice as tall as you! And as long as this bar, but thicker..!

:::she continued with the story:::

...now Neek, who loved Ani-sa with all his heart saw how much she longed to see the Styphike again, that he went into the dessert all alone, with only a sachle of bread, an apple, and a week's worth of water. He promised her he would not come back until he caught the Styphike and tamed it for her.

Ani-sa did not love him in return, but could not resist the chance that he might succeed and bring her the Styphike. If he succeeded, she did not plan to return his love.

You know... you're absolutely right. That's what makes it so powerful. Just throwing that sort of thing to the wind like that is a bad idea... you'll see...

:::Kara went on to discuss in detail the great trilas Neek faced in the desert, overcoming great obstacles, and finally meeting a god who promised to give him the power to control the Styphike if he would vow to return to the desert and act as the god's slave. Neek agreed, deciding that so long as he could give Ani-sa what she longed for most, he'd be displaying his affection most completely:::

...now, triumphant, and with the Styphike following him loyaly home, Neek stepped back into Terra and presented Ani-sa with her prize. Ani-sa, seeing that the Styphike was no longer free and majestic, felt very little of what she had for it before, and suddenly saw how wonderful Neek had become in his journey.

But just as she offered to repay Neek with her love, he refused and told her that he must return to the desert. He told her that he sacrificed himself to bring her what made her most happy, and left.

Ani-sa since that day has been heart broken, and she rides the Styphike along the edges of Terra every day in hopes to get a glimpes of her beloved Neek.

:::Kara finished the story, and took a sip of her wine in order to prolong the pause required to reflect upon the end and the meaning of the story:::

It certainly does... did she just want what was untainable...? Or did she fall in love with him when she realized how much he was willing to do for her? I don't know... perhaps I'll ask her when I get back home. She really does still ride that styphike around...

:::Kara sipped her wine and thought to herself. That thing reeks all the way to the Tropos:::

I'm glad you enjoyed it...

:::she smiled, genuinely happy to have pleased him:::