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 Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 4:56 pm
Rio had never actually travelled by erras before - not the way they were known for, anyway. The sheer darkness of the run, coupled with Caoin's chilling warnings not to fall off, the cold, everything about it, made the whole thing frightening rather than potentially thrilling. And so, when they finally leapt from the space between and into open countryside, the god was immensely relieved. He didn't even look around at first, just leaned forward to hug the erras' neck.
Caoin, whose breath came in heavy bursts, was tired but obviously amused. "I think you liked that even less than Adi. We are all in one piece, I take it?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 6:10 pm
That had probably, no definitely, the scariest thing he had ever had to deal with. Leo had just clung to Rio and kept his eyes shut the entire time until Caoin's words made it seem like it was safe. "I think so..." He slipped his arms from around Rio's waist and took a look around. "This is definitely the right place." The D'Angeline had not ever spent much time outside the city, but the landscape here was hard to forget. It was rolling hills on all sides, and off to their right a ways there was a road that seemed to be fairly well maintained. At least that meant they weren't in the middle of nowhere?
Judging by the temperature and the color of the grass it was probably late in the fall. Perhaps Leo had not been gone as long as he thought? Maybe he would not need the excuse for Alexandrie after all...
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 6:22 pm
Rio sat up again, glancing back at Leo. "I'm glad. We wouldn't want to end up in the wrong place."
"Good." Caoin took a few moments to gather himself and catch his breath, though he snorted at the god on his back. "As if I would get lost." Though he'd made runs like that countless times over the centuries, it was always tiring. Once Rio had straightened, the erras tossed his head and shook his wings, and wings and horn disappeared altogether.
"...I didn't know you could do that." Love blinked down at what now appeared to be a relatively normal horse, albeit a very fine one.
"It...came back to us recently," Caoin explained, picking his way towards the road. "Which way?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 7:03 pm
Leo had not doubted Caoin, but he had also never met a creature who could do what the erras was clearly capable of. He took another look around when asked about directions. There did not seem to be any apparent landmarks at first, that meant they were likely in L'Agnace or Namarre- hopefully it was the former since they had planned on heading to the City of Elua. Eventually he did spot the outline of mountains in the distance behind them.
The mountains of Siovale? That meant they were definately in L'Agnace then. Good, that meant he had some idea of where they actually were. "If we are where I think we are....heading up the road to the left should take us north to the City of Elua eventually." He had no idea of knowing how long it would take because there was not anyway to tell where exactly they had appeared.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 7:13 pm
"I know you wouldn't. I was only teasing." Rio ruffled the erras' mane.
"Left it is, then." Caoin went as directed, walking at a sedate pace while he recovered. Running between was much more taxing than just running, but it should be awhile now before he had to do that again, since they planned to stay awhile.
Now taking the time to look at the scenery, Love observed, "It's beautiful here."
And...fall? Very different to see, coming from the Pantheon.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 7:28 pm
"It is, wait until you see the city." The Pantheon was the only place that Leo had seen that was more beautiful than Terre d'Ange, though his preferences were a bit skewed. It was a shame it was not Spring though, the gardens in the city would be less impressive now. Still, it was sort of nice to be back home and to have Desiderio with him made it all the better. He slid his arms around Love's waist again holding him much lighter than the near deathgrip earlier.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 7:36 pm
"I look forward to it." Rio smiled, leaning back into a Leo a little. Now that his heart had slowed back to a normal pace, he was relaxed but very much excited...and perhaps a little nervous. He was pretending to be mortal, after all, something he'd never done for any considerable length of time. Even if he did well, he was doubtless going to be a bit of an eccentric one.
He already had a good start there, riding a 'horse' without a bridle.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 8:02 pm
Leo gave Rio's waist a gentle squeeze when the god leaned back into him. It would be alright, Love would fit in just fine- among the Servants at least -if he acted like himself. He would certainly stand out, but that was not necessarily a bad thing. Daniel would be so jealous when the Lion walked in with Rio on his arm and it would be terribly amusing.
..
They had arrived late in the morning but thankfully it did not take more than a few hours to reach the City of Elua. It was just past midday when they would catch their first glimpse of the white stone walls. At least the guards at the gate would not question their story, because they were likely busy dealing with merchants and if you were on Naamah's business, well, it was none of their business to ask about it.
"Just relax and I will handle things if they ask...and you should probably stay quiet, Caoin."
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 8:15 pm
"What, you don't have mindspeaking horses here?" the erras teased, and would certainly have been wearing a grin if he were able. Nonetheless, he wouldn't be speaking to anyone - not that anyone would be likely to pinpoint him as the source. It was amusing, sometimes...but no. Not today. He slowed as they approached, taking care not to bump into anyone else going in or out.
Rio rolled his eyes at Caoin, but chuckled. "We'll let you take the lead. Goodness knows what trouble we'd get into otherwise."
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 9:06 pm
"If animals here speak to you, there is a pretty good chance that you are mad." Leo chuckled and tilted his head to press a kiss to an exposed spot on Rio's neck. He had been well behaved the whole trip so he allowed himself private little bit of mischief. "There is bound to be trouble enough for us once we get to Eglantine House."
It was a little bit of a wait, as they were stuck behind a merchant caravan. The wait however allowed for a nice view of the outer white stone walls and a bit of the city inside them from the narrow window the gate offered. A good deal of the lower section of the city was made up of the marketplace and the homes of lesser nobles or rich common folk who could afford to live within the city's walls. Once the caravan was dealt with one of the guards walked back to them. A young man, probably only a few years older than Leo- with dark brown hair and pale green eyes. He had not bothered donning his helm, it was left at the guard post by the gate. "Where are you bound from?"
"The city of Marsilikos." Leo did his best to look mildly displeased about having to wait.
The guard looked from Leo to Rio, then back again. The dark haired man looked like a nobleman, so it was just a tiny bit odd they arrived alone on a single horse. "Your business the in City of Elua?"
"Naamah's business." He frowned. "If you must know, we had some trouble on the way here, that delayed us. My Dowayne will be quite upset if I am back any later than I already am."
At the mention of Naamah's business the guard nodded, waving them along after the explanation.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 9:22 pm
"Ah, if only they knew," Rio mused, grinning, and turned his head to kiss Leo's cheek. If only they knew how many forms sentient life could take! Any one of his followers other than Leo, even the most human-like of them, would have caused quite a stir here. Perhaps one day, they would understand the scope of the worlds, but for now, he would behave himself. "I'll do my best to minimize the trouble-making until then."
By being good. The god in disguise smiled down at the young guard who came to them, but let Leo do the talking. When they were waved on, Caoin moved into the city, and when they were clear of the gate traffic, paused to wait for direction.
"That was easy enough." And rather convenient that such a simple explanation sufficed. While Caoin was still, he took in their surroundings. "The city looks in good condition." Better than many of the places enar the Pantheon, for certain. Rio was impressed.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 9:41 pm
"It was not for a time some years ago, the Mason's Guild did what they could to restore it but it is a large city so some areas still have not been finished yet." But everything was at the very least presentable, it would not do for a D'Angeline city- particularly the capitol -to be any less than that. He leaned in close to whisper in Rio's ear. "Servants of Naamah pride themselves on their discretion to a degree. Being bound not to talk about things helps sometimes."
"We need to take the next left path, then head up the hill. The Thirteen Houses are up on Mont Nuit, but we need to pass through Night's Doorstep to get there first." At least they would not be bothered as they passed through that section of town since Leo was a Servant of Naamah. The locals there had a sort of odd pride about living just below the Court of Night-Blooming Flowers.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 9:56 pm
Caoin again followed Leo's directions, ever-careful about where he stepped. It wasn't often at all that he went into cities, as errais in general needed little from them, and didn't typically do well in most structures. They simply weren't made for large, four-legged animals.
"They seem to have done very well so far," Rio continued to admire. It might not have been perfect, but all things considered... "I can certainly see where that would be useful." Like getting into the city with minimal fuss.
"Night's Doorstep, hm?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 10:07 pm
"Despite its rather seedy reputation the people that live there are quite friendly." Leo chuckled, more than happy to explain things as Rio looked around. "Some of the best, and worst, taverns in the city are here. It is where most of the playhouses are, among other things. Before I was made an adept I used to sneak out and come down here. I probably made the old Dowayne's hair turn grey well before her time with the trouble I used to get into." Enough responsibility had reined in that wild streak considerably, though not entirely as Rio himself knew.
He nodded politely and greeted people who seemed to recognize him as they passed. A few even shot curious looks at Rio. "The only thing you have to be careful of around here is rumor, it spreads like wildfire and can be several times as bad as it started by the end of it." He would not be entirely surprised if those who kept the gate at Eglantine house knew they were coming before they got to Mont Nuit proper.
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Posted: Sun Aug 12, 2012 10:14 pm
"Did you? Poor woman." Rio chuckled a bit, even as he noticed that he seemed to be getting a few curious looks. Well, that had been inevitable. "I rather like the sound of it. We should come back and visit when we have time."
"I'll try not to start any rumors, then. At least, not more than I can help." He was clearly going to be nticed regardless, but he'd do his best not to start anything embarrassing.
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