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 Posted: Sat Jan 29, 2005 5:03 pm
Collection of RP snippets to date...
Rahujo whittles patiently at a long piece of wood, slowly transforming it into a handle for some unspecified tool. She ignores the humans and other Aerandir flitting about, sitting relaxedly with her eye on the horizon. Her hammer, as always, lies beside her, propped up against a rock.
Under her breath she hums a quiet melody that goes nowhere in particular.
--
Rahujo comes to the end of her hummed song. She puts her tool down for a second, and reaches over to pull a piece of chewing leaf from the small cloth-wrapped bundle of tools sitting beside her hammer. She pops it in her mouth and chews meditatively, picking the tool back up and resuming her whittling.
--
Rahujo finishes shaping the piece of wood, and turns her attention to hollowing it out, enjoying the feeling of sun against her skin and the rough texture of the wood and stone in her calloused hands. The pile of wood shavings scattered across her crossed legs slowly grows as the piece takes shape.
--
Rahujo returns to her forge, and dumps her cloth bundle on top of a barrel near the door that serves as a table. One of her tool handles rolls out of the bundle and clatters to the floor. She stoops to pick it up, then removes a few more handles and assorted wooden parts from the bundle and places them in a small box by her workbench.
The forge is warm, as always, and smells of hot metal and burnt wood. The fire is damped, but wisps of smoke still emerge from the hearth and spiral upwards, escaping through a hole in the roof into the warm tropical air.
Rahujo picks up a long poker from the side of the hearth and stirs the fire into wakefulness, tossing a couple of small sticks in to burn. She fetches her blackened kettle from its shelf, and wanders outside to dip some water from the water butt underneath the forge's eaves.
--
The kettle burbles and whistles on the hearth. Rahujo sets her tools down on her workbench and stands up, yawning and stretching. She fetches a small glass from a shelf, sprinkles a few dried brown leaves into it, then removes the kettle from its perch by the side of the hearth and covers the leaves with boiling water.
Carefully, Rahujo carries the glass to her workbench, inhaling the fragrant steam rising from the light brown liquid.
--
Eveningtime. Rahujo finishes the piece she is currently working on, puts down her tools, checks to make sure the fire in the hearth is properly damped, and heads out towards the village to see about food.
The sun is setting quickly over the tops of the lush jungle trees as she walks, enjoying the cooler evening air.
--
There is something in the water, something which looks remarkably like a very squished dead frog. Rahujo inspects it, frowning. She prods it with the tip of a calloused index finger. It bobs up and down in what should be nice, clean, drinking water, harvested from the sudden heavy rains that sweep the islands every few weeks.
She sighs and scoops the froggy thing out of the rainwater butt, tosses it into the middle of her yard. A couple of seconds later a bird dives out of the sky at speed, seizes the dead whatever-it-was and flaps off with its prize.
"Ah well, I've tasted worse than slightly froggy water," she mutters under her breath, and plunges her kettle into the barrel.
--
Rahujo sits at her workbench, occasionally sipping from a slowly cooling glass of tea. It doesn't really taste of frog at all, she decides after a while.
She turns over her workpiece, part of a knife handle, and starts hollowing out a deep groove. The knife blade sits in front of her, rough and dulled from the fire and the anvil, yet to be sharpened.
She takes another sip of the tea and glances outside, her hands continuing to scrape at the bone. Her woodpile is running low, she notices. Perhaps she should go out and cut some more this evening.
--
Thok! Thok! ... Crack!
Rahujo rests her axe on the ground and wipes the sweat from her forehead. A little way behind her lies a pile of logs, stacked in a neat triangle on the leaf-litter-covered ground. She raises the axe again, then lets it fall on the downed treetrunk propped on a rock in front of her. With a few powerful strokes of her axe, a crack forms in the log, the dry wood parting with a creak of protest.
She puts one foot on the top of the treetrunk and leans heavily on it, forcing the crack further open. Pulls a slim wedge from a leather workbelt secured around her waist and jams it into the crack, using the back of her axe to tamp it into place.
Rahujo reaches for the water flask dangling from her belt, raises it to her mouth and takes a swig, dribbles a little water over her face, then re-corks the flask and gets back to work.
Thok! Thok! ... Crack!
--
Rahujo's muscles ache from an evening of woodchopping. She stands in the middle of the forge, stretching, waiting for the kettle to boil. At least her woodpile is now comfortably full.
Facing the dully glowing hearth of the forge, she arches backwards and stretches out her wings, careful not to brush any of the shelves and tables piled with tools, supplies, wood, ingots of metal, relishing the strain and stretch of her powerful muscles. She holds the position for a few seconds, then furls her wings and straightens up.
She eyes the kettle, which remains stubbornly silent. Boil, dammit, she thinks. I want my tea.
Waiting for it to boil, she performs another couple of stretches, cracks her knuckles, yawns widely, potters around the forge a little. Outside, the sky is darkening rapidly, as it always does.
Finally, the kettle starts to whistle. She picks her heavy glove up off the anvil, slips it on and grasps the kettle's iron handle. Its frantic whistling calms as she takes it off the fire and pours her tea.
Rahujo quickly banks the fire, picks up her glass of tea and wanders outside to sit on her stump and watch the sky.
--
Rahujo yawns and stretches, padding down the stairs from her tiny attic room above the forge. She runs her fingers through her mane of dark hair, mussed from the night's sleep.
Outside, the sun is just rising, the sky blazing red and yellow. She yawns again, pokes the fire into sullen wakefulness and heads outside to wash.
She stops a few feet before the door. There is a frog in the doorway. Unlike the recent inhabitant of her water barrel, it is neither dead nor squished. It looks at her uncuriously and croaks a couple of times, then jumps forward into the forge.
Rahujo gently puts her foot down in front of the frog. Hey, this is my home. Yours is outside. You wouldn't like it in here anyway. The frog eyes her foot for a few seconds, then leaps over it and begins hopping around the forge.
She chuckles and lets it be. I don't mind, as long as it doesn't decide to take up residence in the quenching cistern. Froggy water is bad enough - I don't want boiled froggy water and a recently deceased frog floating in it next time I'm smithing something...
The cover of the water butt underneath the forge's eaves is slightly ajar. Perhaps that was how the last frog got in. She lifts the cover off and sets it down, then takes a ladle and scoops a little of the water, pouring it over herself, enjoying the cold shock and wakefulness that it brings.
Once she's done, she shakes the excess water from her hair and wings, and heads back inside. The frog has disappeared for now, she notices.
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Posted: Mon Jan 31, 2005 11:54 am
2005-01-30
Rahujo lies on a large rocky outcrop in the middle of Cetalu's western beach. It is a warm evening on the island, the breeze smelling of salt and seaweed. She props her chin up on her hands and stares out to sea at the blazing sunset.
Absent-mindedly, she reaches into her bag and pulls out a warm palm-leaf-wrapped parcel, then places it in on the rock in front of her and opens it to reveal a steaming mound of rice mixed with red spiced fish. Mmmm.
Scooping up some of the rice and fish with her fingers, she looks around the beach for a chance sighting of Osero. At the bottom of her bag, wrapped in a length of coarse grey cloth, is a bone-handled knife in a leather sheath, her project for the last few days.
The beach is deserted, from the grassy cliffs to the south to the northern jungle headland. No sign of the tall dark Aerandir.
Rahujo finishes one leaf-wrapped parcel, sets the emptied leaf aside, and pulls another from her bag, carefully unwrapping it and enjoying the savoury smell.
As she eats, she watches the waves roll in and crash on sand painted golden by the setting sun. Far out to sea, a few seagulls wheel and cry over the water, simple brushstrokes against the red of the sun as it sinks below the horizon.
Rahujo continues munching on the food, enjoying its subtle spiciness. She herds up the last few grains of rice with fingertips stained red by the curry paste, pops them in her mouth, then licks her fingers clean happily. Thirsty now, she stands up and takes a long draught from her water skin, then re-corks it, tosses it in the general direction of her bag, and yawns massively, full and satisfied.
The sun is almost gone now, the beach dark with the occasional boulder or stick casting long shadows on the sand. Rahujo stuffs the two empty palm leaves into her bundle along with her water skin, and picks her way over the flat rock, still warm from the day, heading towards the little cluster of yellow pinpricks that is the village.
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Posted: Mon Jan 31, 2005 11:55 am
2005-01-31
Rahujo is bored. Osero's knife had been her only project for the last couple of weeks, apart from some assorted tools and knick-knacks for herself.
The Aerandir village currently has a population of three: Osero, Acia and herself. The humans bring in their own tools from outside, and the unborn Aerandir entrusted to the new guardians will have no need of tools for a while.
It's mid-day, and Rahujo sits on a rocky plateau, the highest point on the northernmost island. This high up, there is a refreshing breeze which ruffles her feathers and tangles her hair. She runs a hand over the wind-eroded sandstone of the plateau, sensing the spirit of the stone - its strength and weakness, composition, origins, how if she took a wedge and struck just there she could split off a perfect block... and below it all a deep warm feeling of understanding.
She thinks about the humans' tools. By the time she was a few months old, Rahujo had developed an instinctive feel for stone and metal, and had become bonded to a stone sledgehammer-head found in the ruins of an old forge. Her first work had been a twin-pointed spear for the hunter born a year after her. My first injury too, she thinks, rubbing her sightless left eye.
At the time of their extinction, the Aerandir had been working with stone, gold, bone, leather and bronze for centuries. However, iron was rare and difficult to extract and work, and steel and aluminium were totally unknown. Rahujo's knowledge and skills having mostly been drawn from the memories of her ancestors, her instincts are at a loss when it comes to most human tools and methods.
The sun disappears behind a cloud for a few seconds, and Rahujo realises she is becoming slightly chilly. She gets to her feet and eyes the terrain around her for a second, then jogs to the edge and launches herself off, arms spread wide. Ten feet down, she unfurls her wings and levels off into a glide, buoyed by the warm air rising from the sun-warmed ground.
Her heavy body is not particularly good at flying - she had taken a canoe to the island and climbed the hill to the plateau rather than using her wings, as Osero probably would have done. She'd always enjoyed gliding, however. A twitch of a wingtip sends her on a broad spiralling curve over the forest below. She spots a couple of brightly coloured parrots flying through the forest canopy, a little way below her.
The beach is just ahead. She banks and lets herself sideslip, lazily drifting towards the dense greenery of the treetops. From here the boundary of the forest looks like the edge of a waterfall, waves and ripples of lush green leaves suddenly stopping to reveal a bright white sand beach.
Rahujo glides over the beach, lifted by waves of warmth rising off the sun-baked sand. She dips one wing and gently spirals towards the ground, looking along the shoreline for her canoe. It lies a few hundred feet away, dragged up onto the beach. She brakes and lands nearby, her feet sending up sprays of sand as she dumps her remaining speed. Eventually she slows to a jog, then to a walk.
She stops at the canoe, and begins to push it back off the beach towards the sea. The tide has receded somewhat since she arrived, but eventually the boat slides into the water and she follows, splashing out into the shallows. Once the canoe is afloat, she clambers in and seats herself, then grabs the paddle from the bottom. The tough wood of the oars is hot from a day's sun, and smooth under her hands as she begins to paddle back to Cetalu.
--
Rahujo paddles her canoe towards the beach, running it aground on the white sand with a gentle scraping sound. She hops out, drops the paddle in the bottom of the canoe, and drags it up the beach, beyond the high-tide mark.
She has landed on the southern end of Cetalu's west beach, which curves away from her into the heat-hazy distance. It's late afternoon, but the sun is still hot, beating down on her as she pads quickly over the hot sand towards the village.
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Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2005 6:05 pm
2005-02-01
It's evening, and smoke pours from the forge chimney. The large doors are wide open, and the inside is lit by fierce flames from the hearth. Loud rhythmic clanging rings out into the open area in front of the building.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Crack! Argh!
There is a dull thud and a hiss of steam, then Rahujo strides out of the forge, her skin blackened with soot and damp with sweat. She looks annoyed. She heads for her water butt, drags the lid off, and sluices herself with clear, cold water. She'd lost her grip on the red-hot axe-head she had been shaping, missed it with her next hammer-stroke, and sent it flying into her quenching cistern, narrowly missing her leg.
She splashes some more water over herself, then heads back inside. The smoke from the chimney lessens, and the fire-glow goes out. There is a splash and a clink as she retrieves the axe-head from the water and sets it back on the anvil.
Rahujo reappears at the door a few seconds later, shaking her wet hair back into her customary long mane. She frowns. I'm distracted, she thinks. Too much going on to concentrate on smithing... and you can't afford distractions in a forge. No more tonight. I need some air.
She slides her hammer through the toolbelt she wears whilst working, grabs a small cloth bag from the barrel next to the door, then walks briskly out of the forge.
--
Rahujo stands gazing out to sea from one of the watchtowers on the northern tip of the island. The walk has calmed her, as has the cooler evening air.
She roots around in her bag and brings out a leather-sheathed knife. She slips the blade out and examines it in the moonlight. Well, at least I haven't lost my touch, she thinks. I should probably give this to Osero. I wonder if it's too late to make a surprise visit...
She slips the knife back in its sheath, then jumps down from the watchtower, using her wings to slow her fall, and lands on the ground with a soft thud. Dropping the knife back in her bag, she starts heading in the direction of the village.
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Posted: Thu Feb 03, 2005 12:23 am
2005-02-03
Rahujo knocks gently on the doorpost of Osero's cabin, wondering if the hunter is asleep.
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Posted: Sun Feb 06, 2005 8:54 pm
2005-02-05
Rahujo knocked gently on the doorpost of Osero's cabin, wondering if the hunter was asleep.
Still seated on the bench at the side of his cabin, Osero had given up on attempting to fix the net for now. He had made some headway with the thing, but it was still far from being usable. Setting the net back down beside him, he leaned back, simply thinking to himself.
The sun was well gone now, the darkness enveloping the village. For the most part, the area seemed quiet - the call of crickets the only distinguishable sound to the hunter right now. Then, he heard approaching footsteps. Somebody else was up and about, and heading this way if his ears were not deceiving him. The footsteps stopped and were followed by a quiet knock a few moments later.
Rising to his feet, the Aerandir streatched briefly before moving around to get a clear view of the doorway. He could see now that it was Rahujo. Smiling faintly, Osero tilted his head slightly as he looked at the smith.
"I'm here."
"Ah, there you are," Rahujo said softly, padding around the building. "Got something for you."
She slipped the sheathed knife out of her cloth bag and held it out towards Osero.
"For me?" Osero gazed curiously at Rahujo for a moment, before breaking out into a warm smile as the smith produced the sheathed knife. He took the offered knife, gripping the hilt in one hand and the sheath in the other. Pulling the blade free of the sheath, he gazed at it a moment before looking back to Rahujo.
"Thank you Rahujo. It's perfect - just what I needed" he said quietly.
The smile remained on Osero's face as he resheathed the knife again. He reached for his other knife, sheathed at the thin cloth belt around his waist. tugging it free, he showed the old knife to the smith. The blade is nicked in several places, the metal dull. The handle on the knife is also chipped. The whole knife looks as though it's been through the works. Osero has obviously used it rather a lot.
"Heh. You've certainly put this one through the works." Rahujo tapped the old blade with her fingernail. It made a dull metallic sound.
"Still taking good care of your spear?"
Osero grinned after a moment. He resheathed the old knife before replying to the raven/bison Aerandir.
"Of course. I wouldn't be bringing back much in the way of food if I didn't have my spear. It's even more important now that there's more people here in the village.."
Rahujo nods, thinking for a moment. "Want me to take your old knife back to the forge, or are you keeping it?"
"Well, if it would be of any use to you, you're welcome to have it."
Osero gazed at the other Aerandir curiously. He didn't know much about Rahujo's work, and he wondered vaguely to himself why she would offer to take the old knife, chipped and worn as it was.
"Heh. My tools start in the fire of the forge and usually end up in the fire at the end of their life to start anew." She paused for a few seconds, then continued thoughtfully - "There's a phrase I once heard. 'The soul of the metal carries on.' It'll be well-looked after, worry you not."
Rahujo picked up the well-worn knife, carefully resheathed it and slipped it into her bundle. She already had a vague idea of what the knife would become.
"Now," she smiled, "I expect some good fish out of this, Osero."
"Of course." Osero return the smile with one of his own. "I'll bring some by later on. I was intending to go out hunting anyway."
Falling quiet for a moment, the Aerandir hunter caught some movement out of the corner of his eye. There were people moving around near the community centre, a pair of women that were almost certainly among the new arrivals. Looking back to Rahujo, he tilted his head a little.
"Have you met any of the new humans yet?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 06, 2005 8:58 pm
2005-02-07Colour Guide Dragonfly's posts are written in black.
Nyxa's posts are written in pink.
Fae's posts are written in blue.
Kiiato's posts are written in indigo.
Rahujo's posts are written in dark red.
Osero's posts are written in red.
Lucius's posts are writtin in olive.
Iniko's posts are written in green.
Over the last few days, Rahujo had spent most of her time on the other islands around Cetalu, taking the sun and looking for interesting bits and pieces that might come in useful in the workshop one day. Not overly fond of commotion, she'd been unconsciously avoiding the community centre until the new arrivals had gotten settled in.
"I don't think I've seen anyone but you for the last few days, come to think of it," she said. "Anything interesting going on?"
She followed Osero's gaze, shading her eyes to better view the small cluster of people.
Nyxa burbled softly, "We can cleanse your hands after this is over. I'll help. And yes, it is an amazing experience, I can't wait to see what Iniko looks like."
Lucius began kneading his front paws against the pads of Nyxa's hands, also growing very excited. He chirped softly, tail thrashing around.
"It would seem that way, judging from the noise over there."
His curiousity had gotten the better of him. Quietly, he moved a little closer to the trio, his expression quizzical. As he approached, he could catch a glimpse of multicoloured feathers among the human. Turning to Rahujo, he grinned suddenly, beckoning to the bison Aerandir.
Fae smiled at Dragonfly. Too much excitment for her, she stayed calm and took a seat back down near Nyxa and Lucius to watch Dragonfly's orb. "Wanna come sit down with us?" She offered so Dfly wouldn't be left out.
Fae looked around the town to see if anyone else was around, the fog clearing and sun rosen. She blinked at faint figures in the distance. Squinting her eyes, she cocked her head to the side then waved in their direction. Maybe they had jars too that were already new Areandir! How small she started feeling.
Rahujo followed Osero, padding along behind him curiously. This far out, she couldn't hear anything in particular, just the noise of voices carried on the wind. She strained to see what was going on, but her vision was much less acute than Osero's hunter eyes. One of the figures appeared to be waving, however...The Glowing Orb The ball zips up and down at speed, much more furiously than Lucuis' did. It seems to almost leap with joy in the air until it begins to shudder. Slowly the shuddering spreads though the ball, until it stops dead, suddenly spreading out to form another new little Aerandir.
The little heron raccoon looks about confused for a moment, falling through Chibi's hands onto the ground with a light thud. She looks up, honking lightly.
Dragonfly kneeled down, picking the newly formed Aerandir up from the ground, staring with still wide eyes. She scooched herself closer to Nyxa and Fae, folding her legs beneath her to sit.
Iniko let out a soft honk, and Dragonfly couldn't help but giggle at the small creature.
"Precious..." she cooed, grinning widly to Fae and Nyxa.
Osero spoke quietly. "If I just saw what I think I saw..."
Trailing off, the dark Aerandir padded forward again, approaching the humans. He stopped a short distance away, not wishing to intrude upon the trio of women.
He could see the brightly coloured gryphon clearly now. Another of their kind had been formed and brought into the world. He smiled warmly, merely watching the newborn for now.
Nyxa giggled madly at the adorable Iniko. Lucius took great interest in the newcomer, his wings moving in a flurry of motion as he clucked rapidly. It wasn't until he noticed the newcomers approaching that he paused in his motions, drawing Nyxa's attention to the strangers.
"Ohhhhhhhhhhmygolly." They were obviously grown Aerandir, and Nyxa shook the slightest as she rose to her feet. What an exciting day this had turned out to be, and it wasn't even midday!
Fae froze for a moment, in shock as the figures grew closer. Sure enough, her mouth dropped slightly as Nyxa agreed. She shifted her eyes to the others for a second before she saw Dragonfly's new Aerandir. "Oh my gosh! It's soo cute!! Er...what's its name?" She looked a bit silly for not knowing its name.
She then glanced back to the two adult Aerandir. Many questions begun to pop into her head as it buzzed. This was almost too much! But what a day! She then took out her two jars and sat them out, proudly. x)
Rahujo stopped beside Osero and propped herself up against a fence. She recognised the birth of a fellow Aerandir instantly - as the first born of the present-day Aerandir, she'd witnessed two births already.
She eyed the two newborn gryphs interestedly. A cockerel/panther, and a heron/raccoon. Interesting...
Dragonfly's mouth could barely form Iniko's name, numb with shock and surprise.
"In.... Iniko..." she replied dazedly, holding the small gryphon proudly.
She saw Nyxa and Fae's attention grabbed by something else, and she turned her head to stare where they were looking. Shock once more gripped her body as she caught sight of the two fully grown Aerandir.
"Oh wow," she gasped.
Iniko let out another honk, as if demanding attention. She thrust her beak forward, into Dragonfly's already bleeding hand.
"Ouch!" Dragonfly yelped, pulling one hand back, but keeping hold of Iniko with the other, "Iniko!"
It was then that Dragonfly realized that there were a few shards of glass in her hands, and she muttered a curse or two, before casting it away. It was no time for sore feelings or curses... Her Aerandir had been born! As had Nyxa's! And by the look of things, the trio of women were about to meet two of the adult Aerandir living on the island...
Osero smiled quietly as the second gryphon formed right before his eyes. These three must be some of the new guardians that were recently arrived on the island.
The wolf/eagle Aerandir shifted his dark wings slightly, tilting his head as he gazed at the two gryphons. Finally, the hunter spoke quietly.
"Five now.." His smile widened a little.
Nyxa nodded at the strong looking Aerandir male, "Five, you say? That means there is another wandering around somewhere that we've yet to meet." She was clearly in awe of the adults but she was having a hard time keeping her eyes off of Lucius and Iniko. "Fae, I can't wait to see yours. This is just the most amazing experience ever."
Rahujo nodded. "There is another. She spends most of her time in the Centre, or out at the digs."
Osero gazed at Nyxa curiously for a moment, wondering at her expression. He is used to the people here being comfortable and familiar with himself and the other Aerandir. It's easy to forget that new arrivals to the island have never seen a fully grown Aerandir before.
After a moment, he nodded his head. "Up until today there were three of us."
As Rahujo speaks, he nods his head in agreement, the smith having said what he was about to.
Fae smiled again. "Iniko is really really pretty. I like the speckles on its chest." She admired the new heron/raccoon Aerandir, but turned sharply at the faint sound of the adult Aerandir.
He looked like a wolf...she had a wolf! But she didn't know what his other half was. Hawk, maybe? She sat and, if this was an anime cartoon, she'd be dooling. She looked over his muscular fur covered body and his large fluffy wings. ..Could he fly? Asking herself a rather dumb question, this was all new to her. She looked between Nyxa and the wolf Aerandir, registering what they had said. "Oh, yeah. Well...we havent even properly introduced ourselves yet," She reminded Nyxa, talking quietly to her.
Fae could feel her body shifting to her group of new friends just eyeing the two Aerandir. She noticed one was hiding behind the wolf and cocked her head again. She didn't want to scare them away, so she would wait for their next move. They were so...so astounishing.
Dragonfly listened to Osero and Rahujo closely, nodding as she acknowledgment at the existance of a fifth Aerandir.
"So she's an adult too? Wow. Seems like quite the community is here..."
She gushed at Iniko for a moment, before turning her attention back to Osero and Rahujo.
"Where are my manners..." she murmered, "I'm Dragonfly, and I'd offer you my hand, but I still have to pull the glass out first,"
She grinned sheepsihly as she showed off one of her lightly bleeding palms.
She felt so unwilling to set Iniko down, the raccoon/heron so newly formed, and Dragonfly's maternal bond with the Aerandir wanting to hold Iniko forever...
Iniko on the other hand, seemed to have other ideas, having become bored by just being held in Dragonfly's hands.
The curious Aerandir squirmed away from Dragonfly, wings ruffling slightly as she rolled to the ground, landing on her backside. She let out an loud honk, pulling herself to the side to stand on still shaky legs. Her bright eyes blinked up at Fae and Nyxa, another loud honk escaping her long beak, before she decided that she would like to wobble her way towards the two adult Aerandir.
Dragonfly watched, brows knitting with slight worry as the Aerandir hobbled her way towards Osero and Rahujo, but she felt that the small Aerandir would be safe...
Unless by some freak chance some sort of giant bird decided to sweep Iniko into the heavens. But that was unlikely, and so Dragonfly contented herself with one eye on Iniko, the other on concentration on pulling the shards from her hands.
Nyxa couldn't help but chuckle softly, Lucius tucked safely against her chest. Suddenly she heard a worried cry from the house. "Nyxa?" Julian, he was probably scared to death, waking up in a strange place, and alone.
Nyxa excused herself with a laugh, "Ahh, I should get back to the house. Julian is frightened, t'was his first night here." She nodded politely to Fae, Dragonfly and the other Aerandir, awkwardly introducing herself before she left. "I'm Nyxa, by the way, and this is Lucius."
Rahujo smiled as one of the new guardians introduced herself. "I'm Rahujo, the smith. Welcome to Cetalu."
She turned her gaze to the small gryph, who had just struggled out of Dragonfly's arms and was shakily making its way towards her. She crouched down and watched the little creature's progress across the ground. "And this is...?"
Osero nodded his head as two of the guardians introduced themselves.
"It's nice to meet you. My name is Osero. I hunt for food for the village." As Nyxa excused herself, the Aerandir turned and nodded to her again.
"Take care." He smiled briefly at the young Aerandir in her arms. "I'm sure we'll meet again soon."
Turning to see the other little gryphon toddling over to Rahujo, the hunter tilted his head, the smile remaining on his face as he watched."
Dragonfly frowned as she pulled a paticularily deep piece of glass from her hand, before looking up to where she heard a soft voice, and glancing to Nyxa.
"He arrived all right then did he?" she said, smiling warmly, "Yes... Best you get home... Do you like him Nyxa?"
Dragonfly was curious as to if Nyxa had found the gift odd, or if she loved it. A child was, after all, an odd gift to give...
Dragonfly then turned her attention back to Rahujo, and grinned widly.
"I am very pleased to meet you Rahujo," she smiled, nodding her head towards Iniko, "She is Iniko,"
Iniko stumbled over to Rahujo, rolling head over heels as her front limbs stumbled. She let out a surprised cry, and rolled into the bison/raven's foot.
Fae nodded to Nyxa and looked to her house from which she heard a cry. "Ah, see ya Nyxa! Bye Lucius, you cutie!" She grinned and waved. "Hope to see you soon. It was ncie meeting you both!"
She organized her two jars on the ground as Iniko ran between them to the adult Aerandirs. She smiled, watching the site of the two creatures. It seemed they were just like basic people except they were not made of skin and wore no clothes. She grabbed her notebook again and jotted something down on the same page as the merging.
"Oh, Dragonfly, you're bleeding!" She frowned as Dfly digged shards out of her palms. That must have been a wake up call.
As the female Aerandir approched and interacted with Iniko, she overheard her name and gussed they were introducing now. "And I'm Fae, moreso, a permante nick name." She then looked down to her two artifacts and grined back up awkwardly, a blush in her cheeks. "My Aerandir artifacts havent done anything yet though. Soon, I hope."
Rahujo chuckled as Iniko tripped and bowled into her foot. "Poor thing. Here." She stooped and picked up the tiny gryph, setting her back on her feet and pointing her back in Dragonfly's direction.
"It is nice to see people," she said, her voice deep and warm. "The island has been lonely of late, even for me." She looked in the direction of the departing guardian, Nyxa. "Are there more of you here?"
Osero smiled faintly as the tiny gryphon bowled into Rahujo's feet. As Rahujo gently set her up again, he said quietly, "Everyone takes time to find their feet. I'm sure she'll be running about in no time."
As Rahujo spoke to Dragonfly, Osero's gaze darted quickly to the guardian's cut hands. The smile faded from his face as he saw the blood. He had been caught up in the moment to the degree that he had failed to notice such an obvious thing as that. He silently berated himself over the mistake.
As Rahujo moved to fetch supplies from her forge, Osero turned and nodded to the female Aerandir. He really should have noticed that earlier..
Iniko seemed to beam up in admiration at the help that the older Aerandir had offered, and she rushed hastily back to Dragonfly, laying herself before Dragonfly's knees, honking softly as she nestled her head into her paws.
Dragonfly blinked as Rahujo stepped nearer to her, and smiled at the offering of supplies.
"As far as I know, there are three others... But I'm not sure," she paused a moment, smiling faintly, "Any supplies you can offer me would be a great help... I forgot to ask Isaac to bring me bandages with his last voyage over here..."
She smiled weakly, thanks evident in her face.
"It would be a great kindness of you to help me," she said, obviously greatful for the offer.
Fae slightly frowned as her introduction was ignored. She guessed they were too narrowminded on Dragonfly's injury and gathered her jars back inside her sack. They clanked softly together and she smiled at them. Soon, her house will be ready, and she too will have a little Aerandir running about.
"Iniko got you pretty good.." She lightly joked. She watched Rahujo walk away for supplies and stared back up to Osero for a moment. She was bored. Getting her sketch book back out, she idly flipped a page and begun to start a new sketch. A sketch of Osero. X3
Dragonfly giggled to Fae, her head bobbling in a nod.
"It seems so!" she quipped, pulling one of the last few shards from her hand.
"Iniko's already vicious!" she said jokingly, feeling that, though the Aerandir seemed curious and mischievious, she wouldn't hurt a fly.
Then Dragonfly remembered that it had been Iniko that had pecked at her hand, and dashed the thought from her mind. Okay, so maybe Iniko would hurt a fly, but not for some vicious evil purpose. Or at least, she hoped.
Curious as to what Fae was drawing, Dragonfly tried to peer over the edge of the girl's sketch book, while at the same time, trying to make it look like she wasn't snooping.
Dragonfly turned her gaze back to Osero though, seeing that the Aerandir had lost his smile.
"Erm," she said, smiling weakly.
Rahujo nodded and set off in the direction of the forge. On reaching it, she disappeared into the dark interior for a few seconds, then reappeared with a small cloth bundle.
Rejoining the small group, she unwrapped the bundle to reveal a small first-aid kit, obviously tailored to her own needs - amongst the cloth bandages, salves, bottles and tools, it contained several small glass jars labelled "Burn Salve" in small, neat awkward handwriting.
She removed a couple of rolled bandages and a small bottle of gritty grey-green paste labelled "Healing Paste" from the kit and handed them to Dragonfly. "Here. I will ask Alyosha for more bandages when he visits the mainland."
"Thank you very much Rahujo," she said, smiling to the raven bison Aerandir, "I am grateful,"
She accepted the healing paste and rolled bandages readily, pulling the last of the glass from her hands, and carefully opening the jar. She stared curiously at the grey-green paste for a moment, before dipping two fingers in, and spreading it on one hand. She did the same to the other hand (switching hands of course) so that both had a layer of the soothing salve.
Wrapping the bandages herself would be the harder part, she realized, and she looked up, smiling faintly.
"Would one of you... Mind helping me?" she asked faintly.
Iniko gave a content honk, rolling onto her backside, paws in the air and twitching slightly as she watched Dragonfly and the others.
"Of course." Rahujo moved closer and cautiously took one end of a bandage, wrapping it gently around Dragonfly's hand. "The paste is from the one you have yet to meet, Acia. She is an Earth Spellweaver, but since our little tribe currently lacks a healer, she also produces potions and suchlike."
Carefully, she pinned the bandage in place and moved onto the other hand. Soon, both Dragonfly's hands were bandaged.
Standing back to admire her work, Rahujo's eye was caught by the small figure sitting on the ground with sketchbook. "Ah, an artist?" She leaned forward to peek at the sketch in progress, raised an eyebrow, straightened up, looked behind her to Osero, then glanced back at the sketch and grinned.
"Heh. A good likeness."
Fae gave a small yawn and rolled over onto her stomach to watch Iniko run around. She stretched out a hand to her to see what her reaction would be.
She didn't think the adult Aerandir heard her introduce herself to them, but she guessed another time when they were less busy. Afterall, they were new people to them, and Fae didn't want to do anything to push them away.
She laid down her basic drawing of Osero on the ground as Dragonfly tried to take a peek. It wasnt finished, but it was a good start. As she noticed Rahojo walk up behind her, she sat back up and smiled, blushing a little. She nodded to the beautiful Aerandir and stood up, holding out a hand. "Fae, is what people call me," she said calmly.
Kiiato wandered into Cetalu, her jars safely tucked into her pocket. She glanced around, feeling like she was in the medieval times, this town seemed had been perserved through the ages. Although it really wasn't that old. She smiled to herself. Now all that's need is ladies in foofy dresses and outrageous taxes. The woman stood there for a few moments, enjoying how this place felt in general, before walking on.
Weren't there supposed to be others here? She wondered. And the Aerandir, there were supposed to be some adult Aerandir here, I don't see them either... Puzzled, Kiiato decided to head to the Community Centre, since it seemed to be a place that others would go.
Upon arriving there, she saw some other figures. Were they the other guardians? Kiiato stood looking at them for a few moments, trying to gather herself. She was not the most socially adept person, and so her first impression was almost never her best. She was not even sure how she should approach the others. She took a few more steps, reaching a hand into her pocket and pulling out her jar. Perhaps I should not intrude...
Rahujo looked at the hand slightly awkwardly for a second, then realised it was a gesture of greeting that she'd occasionally seen used amongst the archaeologist staff of the Centre.
She took Fae's proffered hand carefully, wrapping her large calloused fingers around the younger girl's, then smiled and gave a little nod. "Rahujo, smith."
Though her ears were small, they were keen, and as she heard Kiiato approach she jumped to her feet, half running, half waddling towards the new arrival, curiousity written across every inch of her tiny features.
Dragonfly grinned at the drawing, saying, "It looks wonderful Fae!" and was about to thank Rahujo a second time, before her attention was quickly snatched by the small gryphon dashing towards Kiiato.
"Iniko!" Dragonfly called, pulling herself to her feet.
The bandages had been wrapped so that her fingers were togethor, only the tips wriggling through the end. Her thumbs were left exposed though, as they had not sustained any damage from the jar.
"Iniko!" she called again, walking hurriedly after the small Aerandir.
Iniko honked joyfully as she tripped once more, sprawling at Kiiato's feet. She didn't have everything it took to walk, or run for that matter, but her curiousity would always spur her ever onward.
Rahujo opened her mouth to say something more to Fae, just as a small grey-black streak barrelled past her. She turned in surprise just in time to hear a joyful honk and to see the streak tumble to a stop and resolve into a small gryph surrounded by a cloud of dust. She grinned again at Iniko's antics and shook her head.
It took a second before she looked up and realised that the person at whose feet Iniko had landed was not Nyxa, but a new arrival. Uncertain, she said nothing.
Fae grinned at Rahujo's hessitance. Was this new to her? She smiled, however, so she wouldn't scare her. This was probably a step, if not, a big step to take. As she felt the bison's large, fur-covered hand wrap around Fae's smaller fleshy hand and shook the weight up and down a little. "It's a pleasure to have finally met an Aerandir resident," she called her, hoping Rahujo wouldn't be offended. "And thanks. I could make one for you too if you wish some time, but I think for now I am going to go back home and set it up."
She turned to Dragonfly and Iniko running away to a new person. She had lot to record today and was getting exaughsted from all the excitment. "Hey, Dragonfly! I'll see you later! I need to go get on top of my house!"
Hearing the voice of someone, Kiiato looked up from her jar to discover a tiny creature running towards her and a woman hurring after. She blinked confusedly and simply stared at the gryphon for a few moments as it sprawled at her feet. Taking a step back, she examined it. Is that...? She knelt down and took a closer look, confirming her hunch it was indeed a gryphon. Kiiato then glanced up at the woman.
"...Is she yours?"
Dragonfly glanced back to Fae, lifting a bandaged hand in a wave and calling, "See you later Fae!" before continuing to follow after her gryphon.
Iniko practiced prancing, dancing wildly about Kiiato's feet as she let out calls of happiness at the new arrival. The world was so exciting and interesting!
Dragonfly arrived in front of Kiiato, smiling at the question as she nodded.
"Yes, she is my companion..." she grinned, "Her name is Iniko... Mine is Dragonfly,"
She extended a friendly (but bandaged) hand to the other, happy to have met so many people in one day. She glanced to Kiiato's side, where she could see the bulge in her pocket, and Dragonfly wondered if she too was one of the Aerandir guardians, though she half already knew the answer.
"Perhaps we'll meet again soon," Rahujo nodded to the departing Fae. She turned her attention to the new arrival, padding over to stand next to Dragonfly, curious.
Kiiato smiled a little and gently took Dragonfly's hand, noticing the bandages, but not saying a word.
"I am Kiiato."
She followed Dragonfly's eyes to the bulge in her pocket. With her other free hand, she pulled out the jar and held it up. "His name will be Keanu"
Kiiato's eyes then fell upon Rahujo. She attempted not to stare, but to no avail. Noticing her behavior, she looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry..this is all very new to me." She felt slightly awkward.
Dragonfly smiled brightly Kiiato, shaking her hand back, before pulling it to her own self.
"I am very pleased to meet you Kiiato," she smiled, looking down at the jar, "I am also happy to meet Keanu,"
Iniko clicked her tongue indiginantly, rising to her hind legs, resting her forepaws on Kiiato's leg, begging to be picked up for a closer look.
Her wings flapped briskly, as she tried to lift herself off the ground, but to no avail. Her wings were still far too new.
Reassured by the new arrival's nervousness, Rahujo smiled and nodded a greeting. "I am Rahujo, blacksmith. Don't worry, this is very new to me also."
She turned to introduce Kiiato to Osero, but the tall hunter seemed to have slipped off at some point. "And this is Osero ... oh. You will meet him at some point, anyway."
She mentally tallied the people she'd met this busy evening. Dragonfly, Fae, Nyxa, and now Kiiato. Four ... Nyxa had mentioned that there were five new guardians. One more, then.
Kiiato smiled warmly. "Nice to meet you, Rahujo." Unusure if Rahujo had heard her, she repeated herself. "I am Kiiato"
Noticing Iniko's paws on her leg, Kiiato set her jar down and placed her hands under Iniko's front legs, then lifting her up. She held the tiny gryphon much like one would a baby.
"Rather friendly she is." She stood up. "Hello there, Little Iniko."
The whole thing was turning out better than she had expected. Kiiato was overjoyed that everyone was friendly, and she had not made a fool of herself.
Iniko let out a throaty chirp, paws wiggling in the air. She was happy and content with the attention she was recieving from Kiiato, and her beak snapped happily.
"Yeah. She seems to be... I think it's the raccoon in her... As heron's are mostly solitary animals..."
Kiiato nodded, stroking Iniko on the head as she squirmed. "That makes sense" She glanced down at her jar. I wonder what Keanu will be like, I don't know all that much about badgers and falcons, perhaps I should do research when I get back.
"So, when did Iniko change into a gryphon?"
Iniko happily nuzzled her head up into Kiiato's hand, more honk's escaping her tiny throat.
"Just this morning, actually," Dragonfly replied, smiling at Iniko's antics for attention, "It was... Quite amazing, to be quite honest..."
She paused a moment, musing to herself a moment, before continueing, "There's been a lot happening today..."
Dragonfly glanced up at the sky, wondering where the time had gone. It seemed like only a few minutes ago she had woken up, and visited the center of Cetalu... And yet now, it was nearing nightfall.
She smiled then, returning her attention to Iniko and Kiiato. She tilted her head, laughing a little as Iniko almost rolled herself out of Kiiato's hands.
Kiiato chuckled a little at Iniko's actions. "You sure are something" She said to her, continuing to stroke her head.
"Wow, this morning? really?" Kiiato was amazed it had happened so recently. "It must have been very amazing...I can't wait until little Keanu is born" She suddenly imagined a jar being there one moment, then a poof of smoke and there would sit the newly born gryphon. She chuckled again, knowing it was probably much different.
Starting to feel rather tired, Kiiato set Iniko down on the ground. "My arms are getting tired." She bent down and picked up her jar, placing it back into her pocket.
Iniko pouted (or it seemed) as she was set down, honking once more and hopping in place.
Dragonfly reached down to scoop the gryphon into her arms.
"It's getting late," she said, looking once more up to the sky, "I need to be getting home soon to give my Tahnees back home a call. It was very wonderful meeting you Kiiato, and I hope we can talk again soon. Please feel free to stop by my home anytime you'd like,"
She turned to point out her home, and in doing so, noticed that Rahujo had disappeared just as abrubtly as Osero had.
"They must've been tired too..." she thought to herself, feeling a little put out that she was unable to say goodbye to either of them.
She turned back to Kiiato, and gave her a wave before repeating, "See you later Kiiato,"
She turned and began walking to her home, having trouble keeping a good grip on Iniko, as the young Aerandir was squirming, and Dragonfly's bandaged hands made it difficult to grip her.
Kiiato smiled at the two and nodded, slightly dissapointed they had to leave. "Feel free to come by my home anytime also, it is near the eastern forest at the outskirts of town."
She also noticed Rahujo had left, and wondered if all the Aerandir here left without saying goodbye. She did not give it much thought though.
"Bye, Dragonfly and Little Iniko! Hope to see you both soon!" She waved and turned towards her home, pulling out the jar from her pocket, examining it, and then tucking it back in, her emerald green eyes as bright as the sun. What a great day...
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Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2005 1:54 pm
2005-02-08
It was still pouring outside, and even though the centre was only a short jog from Rahujo's forge, she was still soaked. She stood in the centre's little porch and shook the water from her wings and hair, sending a spray of droplets flying in all directions.
Having dried off slightly, Rahujo wandered into the centre, in search of Alyosha. She needed to restock her first-aid kit, after having given a couple of bandages and a bottle of healing salve to Dragonfly. She was also in need of a few assorted items for use around the forge, and her little box of tea leaves was running alarmingly low.
The main room of the centre was empty. Rahujo padded quietly round the perimeter of the room, heading for the corridor leading to Alyosha's apartments on the other side. Wandering to the end of the corridor, she knocked gently at the door.
"Alyosha? You home?"
Alyosha woke groggily from his desk. He had been in the living room, curled up on one of the rugs, book in hand. Obviously staying up late reading was not the best idea.
Shaking his long black locks out and disentagling them from the rug, he got to his feet and brushed himself down, walking towards the door. "Should have been up hours ago", he chided himself as he opened the door.
"Oh... Rahujo" He grinned and stepped to one side to allow the demure Aerandir into the house. "How can I help you?" It had been a while since he had last seen her.
Rahujo had just raised her hand to knock on the door again, when it opened, revealing a slightly rumpled-looking figure.
"Good morning, Alyosha." Rahujo nodded a greeting to the sleepy-looking administrator. "When are you next heading for the mainland? My forge finds itself in need of supplies..."
Foenix had reached the description of the chimera when she heard voices from down the hall. Standing, she followed the noise. Weren't Alyosha's rooms down this hallway?
Turning a corner, she came to a halt. Standing outside of he suite was a tall, beautiful aerandir. At least, Foenix assumed that was what she was. Not wanting to interrupt, she quietly started to turn around.
Nehanda, however, had other ideas. Taking off from Foenix's shoulder, she flew clumsily toward Alyosha and the Aerandir.
Hearing the sound of light footsteps and then fluttering wings from behind her, Rahujo turned to see an unfamiliar person at the end of the corridor, and a small shape bobbing rapidly through the air towards her at head-height. She stepped back reflexively, through Alyosha's doorway, and nearly tripped over Alyosha, grabbing a doorpost to save herself at the last moment.
In the dark corridor she couldn't quite make out the details of the flying object, but from the wings it had to be a gryphon, although it didn't look like one she'd seen before.
Foenix ran forward, incredibly embarressed. "Oh, gad. I'm really sorry. I didn't want to intrude, but I think she recognized you, Alyosha. I'm really, really sorry."
A bit unsure, she offered a hand to the unfamiliar Aerandir. "I'm Foenix. That's Nehanda. i hope she didn't startle you."
Now that her guardian was where she wanted her, Nehanda was willing to return to Foenix's shoulder. She twisted her long neck a bit, catching some of Foenix's auburn hair so that it wrapped amusingly about her head.
Rahujo smiled at the apologetic guardian and misbehaving gryphon. "No, I'm fine."
Still slightly uncertain of handshakes - a polite nod of greeting was more usual for her - Rahujo hesitated slightly before gently gripping Foenix's hand in her own. "Rahujo. I'm the village smith."
Having introduced herself, she turned to make sure she hadn't accidentally clouted Alyosha with one of her wings or sent him flying.
Foenix reached up with her free hand to detangle her hair. Nehanda simply grabbed for another hank and nibbled on the ends. "It's nice to meet you." She chuckled softly at herself. "I'm not usually so flustered. I just hate barging in on people. Besides, Nehanda hasn't quite got the whole flying thing down yet. She's crashed into several walls since yesterday."
"So, you're the blacksmith? That must be a really fascinating occupation." She turned toward Alyosha, not wanting him to feel ignored. "It's good to see you, too, Alyosha. Everything going okay?'
Having made sure that Alyosha was not unconscious on the floor - he was, after all, rather a lot smaller and lighter than the heavily-built Aerandir - Rahujo turned back to Foenix.
"Yes, it can be at times. Sometimes the metal feels alive on the anvil, and I feel as if I can read its mind. At other times it's just a lot of hard work, burns and hammered thumbs." She smiles. "Fortunately for me, I find it to be mostly the former."
Foenix laughed. "I can certainly understand that! I did some metal-working in high school, as part of an advanced art program, and I've always admired those who actually make a living of it."
Nehanda decided that she was tired of being ignored. After all, Foenix was HER guardian! She pushed off from Foenix's shoulder once more to flutter around Rahujo. Who was this? She didn't look anything like the other people she had met with Foenix, and she certainly wasn't like their other family members and pets.
Rahujo grinned at the small bundle of fluff and feathers fluttering around her head. "My, you're a sprightly one, aren't you."
As the young gryphon completed an orbit of her head, she raised both arms to give it a convenient landing platform if it so wished.
From behind her, she can hear getting-up sounds from Alyosha's apartment.
"Alyosha, on the offchance that you're making tea and there's another cup or two going spare..."
Having been nearly knocked over with the sudden rush of people coming to his door he stands there a little dazed as the two females talked. Coming too a little more he gave a little smile to the little gryphon.
Turning to Rahujo he thinks quickly. "Tea... yes tea... why don't all of you come in and I'll make some, we can discuss supplies etc." He smiled gesturing across the room "Please... make yourself comfortable.."
He moved towards the large kitchen to put some water on to boil.
Rahujo grinned at the dazed Alyosha, and accepting his invitation, moved into the room and sat herself cross-legged on a low cushion.
It had been quite a while since she had been in Alyosha's apartments, and they had changed somewhat since her previous visit. Acia's influence, she guessed.
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Posted: Fri Feb 11, 2005 1:56 pm
2005-02-11
The rain that had blanketed the island over the last couple of days had finally passed, the sodden village that it had left behind slowly drying with the reappearance of the tropical sun.
Rahujo climbed down the shaky ladder from her bedroom, yawning and stretching. Golden sun poured in the front door of the forge, sparkling off dust motes in the dark interior. She headed outside, splashing through the muddy, puddle-laden mess that had been her front yard, and hauled the lid off her water butt. With the recent rain, it was brimming with fresh, clean water.
She dipped a generous ladle-full from the barrel and tipped the water over her head. The rain never fell cold on Cetalu - it just descended in massive amounts - but even so, and even having sat in a sun-warmed barrel for a few hours, it was still cold enough to give any early-morning bather a sleep-banishing shock.
Rahujo shook herself, droplets of water flying from her hair and wings and glittering in the sunlight, then grabbed her toolbelt, a shovel, and her bundle from their perch inside the forge doorway. Time to do some proper work...
---
Twenty minutes later, she was in a small clearing deep in the forest, poking at what appeared to be a mound of wet branches with a thin wisp of smoke emerging from the top. It was a charcoal pit, and it had somehow survived the monsoons without being waterlogged. Rahujo poked a small hole in the wet earth at its base with the shaft of her hammer. Smoke curled up out of the hole, and she could see a dull red glow from within.
Rahujo plugged the hole with a dollop of soil, then wandered around the clearing doing the same to the other pits dotted around the perimeter. As she worked, she idly wondered about the newly-born Aerandir - what forms they would take once they progressed beyond the gryphonic stage, what jobs they'd take...
Heh. Perhaps I'll actually have a job to do soon. Spears, blades and bows for hunters, tools for artisans, and the various trappings of their trades for spellweavers, herbalists, diplomats and historians... Rahujo started sketching out some interesting designs in her head while she poked and prodded at the smoking earth mounds.
Eventually, all the pits had been checked, and seemed fine. Good. I'm not in the mood for drying out and rebuilding pits today...
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Posted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 2:18 pm
2005-02-14
Rahujo had been busy the last couple of days, gathering supplies and materials which she might need in the next few months, especially once the newborn Aerandir passed the gryphon stage and needed tools to bond with.
She had spent an entire day wandering through caves and crevices on the northern island of the atoll, collecting interesting-looking rocks which might contain ores of copper, tin, zinc and other metals.
Another day had been spent gathering wood in the forests of Cetalu. The trunks of two saplings and a section of a lightning-felled hardwood trunk now lay at the back of her forge, slowly drying and curing.
All this work required getting up before sunrise and going to bed late, and spending most of her time away from the village, and as a result Rahujo had not seen any of the islanders for days.
Rahujo wandered into the Centre, wondering if anyone was there. Her eyes widened in shock at the unexpected transformation of the interior. She'd never seen so much pink in her life. She paused at the doorway to the large and seemingly uninhabited room, stunned by pink-shock.
A few seconds later, she noticed the food laid out along the walls, and various abandoned paper plates sitting around the place. Never one to turn down a meal offered, Rahujo wandered over to a plate of appetizers.
Not recognising anything on the plate, she poked at one with a tentative finger. It didn't wobble overly much, and it felt like food, so she picked it up and nibbled on the edge. After a short pause, she popped it in her mouth, concluding that she hadn't died yet, so it was obviously safe to eat.
Oooh, that's tasty... She grinned and began to browse the selection of little scrumptious things scattered about the room. Wonder where everyone else is...
---
Having sampled most of the food in the room, Rahujo was slightly bored. There didn't appear to be anyone around, and the exuberant overpinkness of the room was beginning to make her eyes hurt. She wandered out of the Centre and headed home.
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Posted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 4:00 pm
"Trì lùth latha,"
Clang!
"Trì latha luain,"
Clang!
"Trì caorain mhònach,"
Clang!
"Trì fòidean guail,"
Clang!
"Is bidh ie slàn mus pòs thu."
Rahujo hammered as she sung, sung as she hammered, each beat a hammer-blow on the red-hot blade on the anvil, sparks flying as metal met metal, then clouds of steam as her tongs lifted the blade off the polished stone and plunged it into the barrel of cold water at her side. A few seconds in the water, the metal's crystalline structure cooling and reforming, then the blade was lifted again and thrust into the fiery heart of the forge to start over again.
It was dark outside now. She'd started this knife in late afternoon, when the sun was bright and her tongs had held nothing more than a plain strip of bronze. Now, the blade was about six inches long, and nearing its final form. It was a sturdy blade, a blade for everyday work, not for show, she thought, holding the blade at a slight angle against the anvil, hammering carefully down the edge from tang to tip.
Another quench, steam billowing up around her. Rahujo lifted the blade to eye-level and sighted down the edge. Hmm...
Satisfied, Rahujo returned the blade to the fire for one last heat, then withdrew it and set it on the anvil, allowing it to cool.
Her water stones were already sitting soaking in a bucket on her workbench, ready for the final shaping and sharpening of the blade. Beside them sat two double-handled sen - bladed scrapers - and various other tools of the bladesmith's art.
Rahujo would work into the night on this blade, scraping, grinding, sharpening, polishing, then finally pinning the blade into one of the handles she'd made yesterday. But for now, while the blade cooled...
Ahhh... tea.
Thanks to http://www.akerbeltz.org/beagangaidhlig/duain.htm for the Gaelic!
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Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2005 5:11 pm
Late afternoon. Contentedly full from a dinner of rice and fish stew, Rahujo sat on a low stump in front of the forge, relaxedly filing at the handle of a knife with a long file. She had pinned the tang of the knife blade into a block of wood, and was now shaping it to fit the hand of its future owner.
As she worked, she hummed a cheerful tune. The first of the Aerandir, the only people who had been around when she was a child were Alyosha, and a rotating cast of archaeologists. One of the older archaeologists, a mild Scottish woman from the Highlands by the name of Mhairi, had stayed on the island for quite some time, and had appointed herself Rahujo's unofficial auntie.
She had had a fondness for folk songs and a habit of singing them as she worked. One of Rahujo's first memories had been of Mhairi sitting at a desk, singing softly in Gaelic, as Rahujo toddled around underneath.
Her love of tea had also come from her auntie, she thought, grinning. There had always been a china cup of tea and a teapot near Mhairi, and another cup once Rahujo had become old enough to drink hot tea without burning herself.
Rahujo stopped filing and held up the knife, inspecting it critically. She flipped it over and started roughing out the gentle curve of the back fo the handle.
As she filed at the layers of metal and wood, she wondered how Mhairi was doing. She hadn't seen her for about a year, ever since she'd gone back home to Scotland.
Rahujo let her mind wander, imagining Scotland as it had been described to her. Cold, with high hills and mountains and heather, and snow in the winter... she wondered what snow looked like...
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Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2005 3:37 pm
A letter from Fae Dear Rahujo, How're you doing? I'm pretty well and I've been doing some house-reconstruction. I've also ran into a bit of a delima, and I was hoping you could help. I need a chimney for my house and I thought of your great craftmanship. If it's not too much of a hassle, we could trade for something? (Unless Aerandir use a currency, I thought trading would be best.) Whatever you need, I could try and get you/already have in exchange for a chimney body and stack. I don't have any offical blue prints, but I hear you're teriffic at working metal. As well, I don't have any clue as to what kind of metal to use, but something weather proof would sufice. However, I do have a picture of what I want in my head that I could draw for you as a reference. Thanks! -Fae
Mhairi had taught her to read a little when she was young, and she had picked up enough to be able to set down notes about new things she tried while metalworking. It had been a long time since she'd read anything more complex than "copr 2 hans 1 fingr of tin 1 litl of led", however.
She ran her finger across the paper as she read, occasionally pausing to sound out a particularly difficult word, or to figure out one that she hadn't come across before. Ten minutes later she had a vague gist, at least, of what Fae wanted. Good enough.
Tucking the letter into her toolbelt, she stood up and headed in the direction of Fae's house.
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2005 11:48 am
Rahujo finds Fae in the community centre, and discusses fireplaces as Sy bleeds and rants in the background...
RP here.
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Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2005 12:32 pm
Rahujo filled a wooden bowl with cooked rice from a pan on her clay stove, and absent-mindedly ate some with her fingers as she kept an eye on the fish spitted on skewers propped up in the doorway of the oven. A few minutes later, the fish started sizzling, so she pulled them out and set them on the rice, grinning in anticipation.
The afternoon sun was bright and warm as she seated herself on a long log sitting in the yard in front of the forge. Picking up one of the small skewered fish, she munched contentedly on it and thought about the project Fae had given her.
She'd never seen a fireplace of that construction before, but she had a vague idea of the construction. Hmm ... I'm going to need a lot of metal.
Normally, her habit was to mine copper, tin and lead ores on Cetalu and the surrounding islands, haul them to her forge and smelt and alloy them into bronze. It was hard work, and the yield of metal per cart-load of ore was low - but she had never been one to shirk a task.
Aerandir blacksmiths had always mined their own metal, just as artists gathered their pigments and materials, and herbalists their ingredients. It felt right, knowing that you had taken something raw and unformed and shaped it into a thing of value and use.
This fireplace, however, would require weeks of gathering rocks just to make the base, let alone the surround and chimney.
Perhaps on Alyosha's next supply run...
She finished her fish, happily licking the bones and skewers clean, then polished off the rest of the rice. Time to get back to work. Giving the bowl and skewers a quick wipe, she replaced them in her small outdoor kitchen and headed inside.
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