☼ [Furesiya] Cinfai

[Furesiya]

Obtaining (seed)

Safiyah wandered slowly back to her house after having done some light shopping in the market. Originally she had only intended to buy the ingredients she required to finish making dinner, however she had been side tracked by some new wears one of the local vendors had acquired. The items had included, but not been limited to, a few kites from outlaying areas.

Irritably she had purchased one, and all the way back had picked and plucked at it, doing her best to assure herself that her own were better.

Not watching where she was going, she bumped into a tall figure and bounced off.

Stumbling a bit, but managing to catch herself she straightened. Looking up to see who it had been she practically bit her tongue. In front of her stood a rather tall and particularly handsome man. He had pointed ears that peeked out from behind shortish blonde hair and striking blue eyes that gazed down at her with a strange but kind intensity.

Smiling softly he patted Safiyah on the shoulder and took her free hand in his. Doing her best not to snatch it away, she could feel her face burning like fire.

Blinking, she realized he had placed something in the palm of her hand and gently curled her fingers over it. Patting her hand as he had her shoulder, he simply smiled again. Then turned and disappeared around the corner of a nearby building.

Safiyah stood there for a moment not quite sure what had happened.

After a while she looked down at her closed fist then slowly unfurled her fingers to reveal something wrapped loosely with a strip of paper. Slowly she set down the kite and pulled free the paper. Inside was a smooth, softly colored seed which seemed to pulse with a strange warmth.

Upon closer inspection, Safiyah found a single word elegantly scribbled upon the paper.

Omach.

 

[Furesiya]

Planting (seed)

Safiyah had researched extensively into the seed she had mysteriously received. Only a few, very old texts had even hinted at possibly. All of which she had ignored for as long as she could manage.

In the end though, after a few unsuccessful plantings in her own roof top garden, Safiyah had come to the realization that is was necessary...

The texts had vaguely stated that such a seed needed its native soil, and since the only clue she had been left had been a location, she figured that had to be it.

Her parents had been all to happy to hear that she intended to travel, as they had always been on her case in regards to how reclusive she was. They had even given her a hefty sum of money for the trip. Which she was eternally grateful for. Having sufficient funds on any expedition was a god send to someone that did her best to avoid asking for help of any kind.

Which doesn't mean she made it across Elore without mishap. Though, all in all, it was a rather straightforward trip.

Upon reaching the border of Omach, though, she quite regretted her decision. Even though she greatly felt the need to put to rest her curiosity over the seed, the heat of this region was incredible. And where as she always had trouble keeping warm back home, in this place that was hardly a concern. She had quickly bought a new wardrobe of lighter cloth (though still tried her best to find garments that would cover her arms as she felt far too exposed without sleeves) from the market place of the first large city she had come across.

Managing to work up the courage, Safiyah asked, in halting and stumbling words, the stall vendor where she might find a place to rent.

Luckily there was a large complex nearby that was a group of houses lumped onto one another in a rather organic way. The land lord was a quite old woman that took her money and showed her to the roof top house without much fuss, something that Safiyah greatly appreciated.

She settled in rather quickly and was delighted to find a few already potted plants on the porch. Ripping out a rather weed-y looking bush, Safiyah arranged the soil, creating an indentation that reached to about halfway down the pot. Gently poking the seed into place she covered it snugly with more of the arid local soil and turned to find some water, wondering how often you were supposed to water such a thing.

When she returned she was startled to see it had already started its growth!
A small sprout of a rather wood-ish looking texture poked cutely from the top soil, a few golden flowers sprinkled about its limbs.

Carefully she sat next to the strange plant and sprinkled a bit of the water over it. She stayed there for quite a while, simply observing. It had already shown its self to be quite abnormal and she couldn't help but wonder what would come next.

 

[Furesiya]

Time progression(spark)

Considering the only thing she knew how to do well was make kites, finding a job in this rather exotic city was particularly hard for Safiya. She didn't have the funds to completely open a new shop yet, which meant she had to search for income by way of an employer.

It took a while, thanks to her shyness, but she eventually found a young and thankfully desperate teahouse owner. At first he had thought to make her a serving girl, but it quickly became apparent that would end up costing him more in broken teacups and pots than he was able to afford. So instead, for the time being, she was set to working in the back cleaning dishes and preparing the tea its self.

The man was strict, but kind, and gave generous allowances for Safiyah's inability to speak well with others. As time went by she found herself becoming -slightly- more used to it... Though just a bit.

So five days a week she worked from early morning to late evening at the shop, which thankfully was rather cool inside its thick stone walls. On her days off she did her best to create a few kites from the materials available. However she found that once she had actually succeed, their was either no wind at all or far too much. Something told her this was not a land that needed things run by wind.. she would have to find an alternative eventually.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few times as she lay to go to bed, she could have sworn she saw a faint red spark of light flicker from her mysterious plant's tiny branches. But then it was gone so fast she simply found herself rationalizing it as lack of sleep.

However, when this did happen she found that she had trouble falling to sleep as the supposed hallucination brought many thoughts to her mind. The first and foremost being if her decision to come to this land had been a good one. The seed had intrigued her greatly, not to mention the method in which she had received it. An image of the strange man still popped up once in a while. One one had she wished she had been able to ask some questions. Like what the purpose was? Why her? and did it really matter that much? But, on the other hand, she knew she never would have been able to utter such words and was grateful for the manner in which he had kept it simple and quiet.

If this ended up just being some random seed that was actually quite common in some random land, she didn't know what she would do. She had a feeling her parents wouldn't care whether or not her reason for leaving was a valid one, only that she had left, but that didn't make her feel any better really.

Sighing heavily, she plopped a pillow over her eyes and forced her mind to be quiet. She had to get up before dawn. Which always came far too quickly it seemed...

 

[Furesiya]

Time progression (spark)

About a week after she had planted seed Safiyah caught the red spark of light out of the corner of her eye once more. It was just past dawn and she barely had managed to clear the sleep from her eyes. She yawned widely and meandered through the open door and out onto the porch where the pot was.

Standing for a while, she stared. Nothing happened.

Yawning again, she reached out and poked the little plant gently while wondering what the deal was. As her finger touched the stem, another very definite spark of light flared to life. It swirled about for a few moments then dissipated.

Startled, Safiyah jerked back her hand out of reflex. Holding the finger to her chest as if she had been burnt, she realized that this was what she had somehow been waiting for: The reason why she had come out here, the thing that would make it worth while and not question her sanity. Or that strange elf eared man, for that matter.

Slowly she reached back out and hesitantly replaced her finger upon the rough surface of the stem. Like before the spark popped to life. Steeling herself, she kept her finger in place and watched as the light drifted happily about. It seemed to emit a strange sense of warmth and joy. Unable to help herself, she felt a small smile tug at the corners of her mouth as the energy seeped into her very being.

She blinked as the rising sunlight peeked above the edging that lined her porch. Squeaking a bit, she dashed back inside to finish getting ready, she had not been late to work yet and didn't plan on starting now.

~~~~~

All day as she made tea and washed dishes, her mind kept wandering back to her apartment and the mystical plant that awaited her there.

After having come in contact with that strange energy she couldn't help but feel a little cold without it. It had been so -warm-. Wondering what it was supposed to be, or what it could possibly mean, she spaced out and dropped one of the tea cups as she was moving it to the drying rack. Unable to react quickly enough, it fell to the floor and shattered. Frowning, she bent to pick up the pieces, hoping the owner hadn't heard.

Unfortunately that wasn't the case and he stuck his head through the curtain separating the store from the back room.

"Again Safiyah? Really?"

Safiyah bowed her head in a bit of shame and continued scooping up the shards. Gasping in surprise, she dropped the pieces she had collected as she felt one bite into her finger. Bright red blood welled up, trickling down to her palm.

The owner sighed and knelt next to her. Taking her hand he wrapped the finger tightly with a towel.

"How can one person be so clumsy?" He asked, though his tone was kindly and he seemed to keep trying to catch Safiyah's glance though she did an expert job of avoiding it. She didn't know much about anything when it came to interactions with other people, but it had become increasingly more obvious that the shop keeper had probably started taking an interest in Safiyah. Though for the life of her, she couldn't fathom why.

~~~~~~~~
Finally, later that night she returned to her new home, just as tired as always.
Sighing she sat on the back porch with a cup of her own tea and sipped while she watched the spark flicker to life now and again. Her contact with it that morning had seemed to energize it, and even though her cut finger ached, the plant and its energy's presence seemed to make it fade.

 

[Furesiya]

Time progression (sapling)

It had been a month since she had come to Omach, and where as she did her best to stay out of the sun as much as possible (she had discovered early on that she was prone to burning), Safiyah had found her hair color lightening and skin color darkening a bit. Also, she still didn't feel comfortable having her arms bare, though it had become rather necessary to at least shove up her sleeves at work. For some reason that seemed to cut down on a few accidents here and there.

The owner had actually even started having Safiyah serve the customers once in a while if someone needed a break. Thankfully she hadn't spilled hot tea on anyone yet.

"You did good today, Safiyah." The owner patted her on the back as he walked by to the back room.

Safiyah just nodded and turned her blushing face away. It actually felt nice to be complimented like that, however she couldn't help but wish it didn't have to be so embarrassing.

"There is a festival tomorrow, you can take it off if you like." he said as he poked his head through an empty space in one of the shelves so he could see her. "I could show you around more. I know you don't get to do much other than work. The other girls will be here holding down the fort." He added that last bit in as if to cut off any possible reason for him to not go.

"N-no... I don't do so well in.. in crowds." she mumbled, staking some washed and dried tea trays carefully.

Miraculously he always seemed to manage to hear her, no matter how she whispered or mumbled.

"Ah, haha. " he chuckled lightly. "That is true. Well.." he seemed to think, probably trying to come up with an excuse as to why she should still go with him. "Still, take tomorrow off. Relax. And if you feel like it go to the fair." He left it at that and went back to work.

Where as most girls (from what she had observed anyways) would probably get mad that he didn't pursue the subject, she actually found herself liking him a tiny bit more because he -hadn't- pushed it.

Finishing her duties she left for home with a small bow.

~~~~~~

Flopping on her bed with a heavy sigh, she let images of what she imagined the fair to be like float through her mind. It would probably be quite lovely to see, minus the crawling crowds...

Her thoughts were interrupted as she felt a slightly warm pulse wash over her. Frowning slightly, she moved the pillow away. The sun had already set and the air was quickly cooling as it always did. Slowly another wave pushed over her, though now that she could see, she saw that it was also accompanied by a glowing coming from her plant.

Scampering over to it, she watched in amazement as the little sprout seemed to stretch and grow with each pulse. Eventually it seemed to calm. Now more tall, the spark seemed to have a far more permanent presence and was hardly as fleeting.

Also... was that a voice that she heard??

 

[SOE Mule]

Safiyah, it is time you drew out the spirit out of the seedling, but to do this I must send you upon a journey, a quest. It is said in Omach, that the sand alone can bake a man to his death, so I ask that you leave and brave the desert to travel North for a day. Be warned, you must bring lots of water on your quest, for half way you shall meet a fellow traveller who is dying of thirst. If you do not give him water he will die, if you share your water with him however, both of you may not make it to your final destination. At the end of your journey you shall be richly rewarded, and never forget Safiyah. Your actions directly affect your seedling.  

[Furesiya]

Desert travels(sapling)

The tall elf man had caught her on her way home. It was the end of her work week and she was definitely looking forward to sleeping in. Though, at his words, it quickly became apparent that that would not be the case.

Luckily for her, he seemed content to stay around for a bit and answer all of the questions that had been piling up since she had received the seed. He was patient with her quiet and nervous ways and answered quite satisfactorily.

Now, as she packed her bags, she thought back from the start of her journey to Omach and found herself strangely glad. Not only did the reason for the seed happen to be quite important, but a reason in the first place.

To keep her load manageable, as she wasn't exactly the most stalwart of people, she packed only food and water... and mostly water at that. Extra clothes would be a luxury. She was spoiled, but not ignorant. The man had said a day, and hopefully it would be just that, however she knew it would be best to prepare for the worst. What clothes she did choose, were in layers. The day would be hot and the night cold and she had absolutely no idea where she was going to end up.

Saying a quiet goodbye to the sapling, she made her way out of the apartment and then to the edge of town. Along the way, she saw her boss from the tea shop picking up a few parcels from the post office. Quickly she darted by, not wanting to have to explain why she was about to wander out into the dessert alone.

~~~~~~

She was barely out for long before she had to start wiping the sweat from her brow.

Sighing slightly she stopped for a moment and took out a scarf, which she tied around her head to absorb the moisture before it could drip into her eyes. She also took the opportunity to tie her hair up off her neck and back.

Before continuing, she draped her night cloak over her had and let it hand down her back, hopefully shielding her from the harsh glare of the sun a bit.

The man had not given her a particular direction and she had a sneaking suspicion that even if she had asked, she wouldn't have gotten any other answer. So she simply resolved to continue straight forward. However, once in a while she found herself subconsciously diverting to this side or that in an attempt to keep the sunlight from searing her face for too long.

Safiyah had brought a compass and knew how to read the stars to a certain extent. She didn't really find herself worrying about returning to the city, but somehow not having a set destination was a little unnerving.

~~~~~~~~

Just after mid day, Safiyah crested the top of a particularly large sand dune and saw bellow her a small patch of pathetic looking shrubbery. Anyone that knew anything about plants would have known that that meant there was water somewhere under those burning sands. And apparently someone -had- had that thought, for under the largest of the shrubs sat huddled a figure.

Sliding down the side of the dune (she had gotten pretty good at this over the coarse of the day) she realized this must be the person mentioned that would need water.

Safiyah had done her best to conserve her supply for this occasion, but it had been rather hard. Her body insisted on pumping out more sweat than she was able to make up for. In fact at this very moment, a large cold glass of water seemed like it would be the most perfect thing in all the world.

Carefully Safiyah approached the figure. The pointy eared man had not said if this person would be benign or hostile, only that he or she would need water.

She knelt next to the figure and placed a tentative hand upon what she thought to be a shoulder. The figure was wrapped tightly in very dirty robes, so it was hard to tell.

"Excuse me.. " She said quietly. The figure stirred and turned over.

The face she was greeted with was just as dirty as his robes. He had obviously been out here for quite a while, and she was pretty sure not all the streaks of filth were dirt, some looked suspiciously like dried blood.

"Hmn.." the man tried to speak,but his throat was obviously too dry to produce anything more than painful scratching sounds.

Safiyah nodded and took out her last water pouch and handed it over to him. Though, he immediately fumbled it. His wrapped hands dried, numb and also covered in dried blood. She bit her bottom lip and took back the water pouch and did her best to position herself in a way that would allow her to slowly tip the liquid down the man's throat without spilling any.

He greedily slurped down almost the whole thing and probably would have finished it off had he not almost drowned himself.

Pulling back the water container, she let him regain his breath before asking.

"Are you injured?" The presence of blood had been bothering her from the beginning. Was it his own or that of someone else?

"Mah leg." the man croaked and shifted a bit so that his cloak fell away to reveal his thigh.His pant fabric was shredded and a few large, though luckily not too deep cuts were slashed almost from hip to knee. The bleeding had stopped due to the dry heat and a mixture of dust and sand that had caked into the cuts. It would definitely become infected soon if it wasn't treated. And medical supplies was not something she had thought to bring.

The man has said to travel for a day and meet the person that needed the water. However it had barely been over half a day when she had found this man. Perhaps he was not the right one? Did she have to keep going?

A groan of pain brought Safiyah's attention back to the wounded man in front of her. Even if that were the case, she couldn't leave him here. Not to mention she was almost out of water. She would have to go back. Maybe the elf would let her try again? And if not... well, she would deal with that if the time came.

"I don't.. suppose you have anything that could... help us walk?" She murmured, looking around her. There was nothing but sand and weak, half dead weeds.

"Here? This might help?" The man grunted and groaned as he moved around, pulling out from under his cloak at his side a rather worn walking stick. The head of it was covered in blood and she had a pretty good idea what had happened to whatever had injured him.

Trying not to look too pessimistic, she took the stick and stood, offering her hand. She did her best to hoist the man up and she was somewhat pleased to see he did his own best to carry as much of his own weight on his good leg as possible.

"This way." She said and started to lead him around the dune she had just climbed. Getting back would take -much- longer than getting out here she realized.

~~~~~~~~~

The sun had set hours ago, though luckily the moon was full and its reflected light was enough to see by, so they both decided it would be best to continue, as far off in the distance a few specks of light indicated the city.

Safiyah was absolutely exhausted. Every muscle known to man kind ached in a way she never knew was possible. And thirsty, oh god was she thirsty.

Though she kept quite as not only was it her nature but she knew her traveling companion was much worse for wear.

~~~~~~~

Finally, the silhouette of the city could be seen, it would only be a few more hours until the reached the edge and could get the man proper help.

"Almost.. there.." She rasped to herself mostly.

Suddenly, she stopped. The man did so aswell, though mostly out of fatigue and the inability to carry on on his own.

"Wassa matter?" He whispered, apparently doing his best to not fall asleep on his feet.

"Do you.. feel that?" The air had suddenly taken on a very strange atmosphere. It was still. Perfectly still. As if someone had inhaled deeply and was holding their breath, waiting for something.

Slowly she turned her head to look behind them.

Frighteningly close behind them an absolutely horrendous wall of darkness was rushing forth.

"What is-?"
The man finally noticed too.

"Sand storm... we won't make it..." She knew he meant the city, but his tone was so defeated he mind as well of meant everything in general.

"No. We will. We have to..." She had never thought about death, but this was definitely -not- they way she wanted to go. Not to mention she had tried so -very- hard to save this man. There was no way she was going to just let it end.

Letting the man drop to the ground, she cracked the walking stick over a nearby piece of rock that had been revealed at some point in time by the ever shifting sands. It broke messily in half, though she didn't care, there was no time. The wall of sand and wind was almost upon them.

Safiyah jabbed one end of the shorter stick into the sand next to the man and spread her and his cloak over it, making a very low, makeshift tent. She rushed under its cover and tucked the edges around them just in time. The edge of the storm crashed into them with such force she cried out slightly and held onto the coverings with as much might as she could muster.

~~~~~~~
The storm raged for at least an hour. Tough, thankfully the winds seemed to keep the sand around them moving quite fast and it didn't have too much of a chance to settle upon them.When it finally ended, Safiyah had to only shake off a less than half a foot of sand for them to be free.

During the whole thing, the man had somehow fallen asleep. However, she couldn't really blame him. Had she not been so perfectly terrified, she was tired enough to almost drop dead.

For now, she figured they would just sleep as it was then continue to the city at first light, or risk shriveling under the unforgiving sun.

~~~~~~~~~~

At about noon the next day, she threw herself onto her own bed with what should have been a sigh, but she found she even lacked the strength to do that. Bathing would definitely have to wait....

They had been attended to almost immediately upon entering the city by numerous concerned citizens. Though as soon as she knew the man was to be well taken care of she disappeared. She hated being fussed over and honestly just wanted to drink as much water as she could hold, then sleep.

Her last thought before drifting off was of the pointed eared man and what he would say of her half-journey.