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Khael-Danis could not believe his ears.

How can that be the elders' decision? Neutrality? Hiding?

"...Cowardice...", the thirty-one year old shaman whispered aloud.

Khael, being a member of the Hælt sect of the Kiyap Turea, the healers and shaman of the tribe, dealt first-hand with the wounded and saw the tragedy that was being wrought in Feretris.

"Where is the honor?"he said out loud, his voice gaining strength and volume," Where is the pride? And above all else, where is the desire to see a changed world?"

He was beginning to gain the attention of those around him.

"How can neutrality be the proper path for the tribe? How can it possibly solve anything? War consumes all, it is a never ending vacuum that if left unchecked will bring about the destruction of everyone and everything we have ever known! What will you do when the war spreads beyond Feretris? What will you do when their imperialistic ideals begin to eat through the nature that surrounds us, the nature that we worship?"

His voice had grown to the point that it had become the center of attention at the gathering, all eyes were upon young Khael.

"I will tell you. Should you continue upon this path, you will do nothing. You will allow them to come through and destroy everything around us, and allow the world to crumble and rot while we are untouched for the time being. What will you do when you run out of places to hide, and they do not wish to create a pact or treaty? What then?"

Khael looked to the sky and continued his speech.

"We've all seen what devastation there is outside the safety of the tribe. I have tended the wounded and witnessed their plight first hand. I for one will not stand here and allow innocent lives to be tormented. I will not allow our people to suffer the same fate as the victims whom I've assisted in the past, nor buried the dead who have not been as fortunate."

Khael looked to the crowd, seeing mixed reactions, he shook his silver haired head and sighed.

"I know not what strength lies within my blood, but I want to make a difference in this world. If that means leaving the safety of a tribe who cares not for the woes of the world, then so be it. I am departing in the morning, whether by myself or with others. I wish you all well, even if your views are not in tune with mine."

With that, the young shaman spun about and walked off into the night.

Khael-Danis turned about to regard the curious child.

"I am not entirely certain, young one, but the spirits seem to whisper that I should go towards Tok. Perhaps there is something or someone there whom I can discern my next move from that point on."

The shaman raised an eyebrow as he looked at the young girl.

"Why do you care, little one? The world is an extremely dangerous place, especially for one such as yourself. You would do better to remain with the tribe than follow a 'madman' out into the wilderness."

(I still allllllllllllivvvvvvvvvve)

The spirits did indeed whisper, whether you could call them all sentient or not. Some one in Tok was about to put up a beacon. It happened to be for dragons, but naturally, whatever method attracted the dragons would also be available to some other magical creatures and affect the spirit world in some sense. This one would be hastily put together by inexperienced hands, sending lopsided ripples back in time as well as space. Unfortunately for the shaman, that would mean that sometimes the beacon would be there, and then sometimes not, until they reached the point in time where the sloppy thing was actually set up. To his benefit, it was directed at the plains that he must head through to get to Tok.

The here-and-gone quality would cause some shamans to ignore it, while others might simply recognize it as having nothing to do with them. And that, of course, was of the ones sensitive enough to catch a whiff of it in the first place.

This meant nothing to the girl. She puffed out her chest and clenched her fists. "That is not what you said just a moment ago! You said they will come here!" Thinking fast, she tried to seal her fate with him by guilt trip: "If you won't let me follow you, I'll go off on my own. I'm not staying here." She huffed as if to say 'and that's that' but she did not feel quite as brave as she sounded. To stay behind or to go out were both madness in her eyes, especially not knowing about the beacon, but she had to pick one.

The girl nodded as he spoke, hearing nothing that surprised her.

She straightened, clasping her hands behind her back. "Rayle." Beginning to relax her position, she added, "What exactly is our goal, Shaman?" Calling him Shaman was like calling a person Doctor or Sir and smacked of formality. Furthermore she assumed that he had a reasonable goal that he could articulate. She was putting him squarely in charge of their small group for the time being.

Rayle listened very quietly in the dark. Most of what she heard, especially in the beginning, was Blah Blah Blah. Well, he was a shaman, she figured, and so easily taken by fancies and used to fanciful words.

"Uh," she flatly, "You're leaving in the morning? Some of the villagers are very mad at you. Won't that give them time to stop you?" If her advice was not entirely applicable to Khael-- after all, the people might respect a Shaman enough to let him do his own stupid things!-- it was urgently applicable to herself. She couldn't think of any one she could stay with that night that wouldn't try to stop her. Sure, she could try just not telling them. But it would be pure luck if no one in the crowd had noticed her going off after Khael.

"I don't trust our compatriots as of late. They act as cornered beasts."

And that was Khael's first real clue as to her function in the tribe. Although a majority of the tribe would be familiar with the general behavior of animals, a hunter would leap to that analogy right away. It might also explain the ease with which she seemed to be leaving them, as hunters were paradoxically loners and used to hunting in small groups.

"I have a few things I could grab, but nothing that would keep me overly long," she pressed, "I am always packed, and can go long days without sleep. Do not delay on my behalf."

If it hadn't been dark, Rayle's relaxation would have been visible. "At the gates," was all she said, a confirmation. She slipped out of his presence and back towards the center of the growing village.

The gates, of course, were not actually gates. Ironically, the term had been appropriated from Feretris practices, as each compound would have literal gates at the main entrance even in the absence of an all-around fence. The leader's tents provided the same affect, outlining a sort of main entrance for the Kiyap Turea.

Rayle gave the tents a wide birth as she headed out of the village. She avoided being stopped by any one-- no one in the leader tents stirred. They might not even be in there, considering the commotion that had just gone on. Probably deeper in the village, calming the people.

No sooner had they met in the darkness than Rayle had grabbed his hand and whispered, "Come on!" She pulled him away from the village, excited and breathless like a teenager in her first love affair.

"Do you think that this is far enough away?" she asked once they were certainly out of ear shot. She giggled nervously. "I hope no one spotted us!"

Even though they had not traveled long, already they had excited the woods and entered the plains proper. Here the biggest danger with traveling at night was twisting your ankle in a gofer hole or stepping on a snake. At other times they might have to worry more about large felines and stampeding herds.

Rayle had brought a light and was anxious to use it, but was not yet sure that they were far enough away. Her head swarmed with the possible pros and cons, leaving her feeling giddy. On the one hand they might attract dangerous beasts if they lit the lantern. On the other hand they might trip in holes if they did not. As they slowed and she asked her questions, she began to untie the lantern from her pack. This would allow it to make some noise as they walked but it would also make it more available to her.