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 Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 6:54 pm
Vajrayana bounded along the path, staring around him wildly. He was flushed and snorting with exertion, but still he continued. His crown, normally glittering golden upon his brow, had been stolen. It was embarrassing how it had happened. He had taken off his regalia to bathe when he noticed it, a jingling on the lake bank. He'd turned to see an eagle taking off with his crown locked in its talons. He had never seen an eagle so large, never knew they could grow to great enough sizes to commit thefts of that magnitude, and yet it had occurred. By the bright colors of the eagle he knew it to be a familiar. It was probably bonded to a soquili, probably one not too far away. He desperately looked for it now, hoping to recover his most prized treasure.
He could feel a tightening in his chest at the idea of losing it permanently. His father had given it to him upon reaching maturity. He knew there would be no replacing it should it be lost forever...
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Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 6:59 pm
Hermes had his head low to drink. He swallowed the water gratefully, feeling its coolness permeate his heated body. He had been flying for the better part of the day, and his wings needed a rest. He hadn't quite decided yet on what his plan was for the rest of the day and the evening. It was uncommonly warm, but still winter. It would undoubtedly get cold overnight. He could return to the Kawani village, his home, but he would rather stay in the wilds for a night. But would it grow too cold for him to be comfortable? He had his thick winter coat, but he was most familiar with the warm blankets of the Kawani during this time of year.
He raised his head again, still unsure of his decision. He could always fly back in the morning when he was rested, if there would be any rest to be found in the cold.
Not yet finished with his ponderings, his ears flicked to one side. Someone was approaching. He turned to see a stallion come trotting into view, looking hassled and in a hurry. He blinked at him, expecting him to go passing by. When the stallion turned and began to trot towards him, Hermes began to wonder what was going on...
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Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 7:02 pm
Vajrayana scanned the stallion, briefly accusing. "Do you have a familiar?" he asked, staring into his face and looking for evidence of guilt. The stallion had wings. An eagle would certainly bond to another that could fly, would it not? As angry as he was, he was more wounded than anything. He desperately wanted his crown back, and would accost as many soquili as he needed to get it back. He didn't see an eagle about, but still clung to hope that his search might be completed.
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Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 7:05 pm
"I have no familiar," said Hermes. His voice was heavily accented from his long time spent with few but humans for his companions. He couldn't help but be confused and a little unsettled by the stallion. He was certainly distressed by something, but Hermes had no idea what a familiar might have to do with it.
"Can I help you?" he asked mildly, wondering what was going on.
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2015 5:26 pm
"Maybe you can," said Vajrayana. He still couldn't decide if he thought the stallion was guilty. His accent made him harder to read. Vajrayana couldn't quite place it. It was familiar, but not quite enough. Snorting slightly, he continued with his story.
"An eagle stole my crown. It flew in this direction. Do you think you saw it?" He watched the other's face ever so closely. He wondered if the stallion might even try to fly away to avoid admission of guilt. If he did, Vajrayana toyed with the idea of trying to tackle him. He was not a violent soquili by nature, but this was a desperate time. Perhaps he could get rough if it meant the return of his most valued treasure.
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2015 5:41 pm
That explained why the stranger was so prickly. Hermes watched him with less confusion and more compassion now. It was clear that he was distressed. Hermes imagined that he would be too if something dear to him had been stollen. "I haven't seen it," he said. He knew this was not what the stranger wished to hear. "Was the crown very large? I do not think an eagle could fly very far with a heavy load."
That was something he was personally familiar with. He occasionally carried goods from one place to another for his human friends, but it was exhausting work. A bird would have even more trouble with it, he'd expect.
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2015 5:50 pm
The stallion's response was enough to cool Vajrayana's anger. He seemed concerned, willing to be helpful even. He let his suspicions die down and took a calming breath. His crown was missing, but not everyone was a suspect. There were far more innocents in these woods than guilty.
"It was large," he replied. "And heavy. I was surprised it could even fly off with it." The eagle was one of the biggest he'd ever seen. In retrospect, he remembered how it had labored to take off. The green stallion was right. It couldn't possibly have gone very far. It had to have stashed the crown somewhere nearby by now or passed it off to an accomplice. Where would be the best place to hide a crown around here? Suddenly growing weary of the uncertainty, he felt his hope flag.
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2015 6:03 pm
Hermes thought about it. He wasn't overly familiar with the inhabitants of the area, but he did remember hearing something that might be helpful. "I think there is a colony of eagles not too far away," he ventured. A friend of his had mentioned it as a place where some soquili sought out familiars to be their companions. Apparently large numbers of spirit touched eagles all roosted together.
"I would think that looking there would be a good start," he added. "Even if the culprit was not there, they may know where to find them." In general, Hermes found that spirit touched animals were very helpful if one was conscientious in asking them. He'd known some that had treated them as lesser to soquili. He did not, and in fact had several close friends that were neither soquili nor human.
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Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2015 2:49 pm
It seemed that he really had lucked out with this chance meeting! Vajrayana immediately recognized the suggestion as a sound one. If the eagles were a bunch of thieves, the crown was bound to be there. If the eagles were honest and honorable, they would most likely help in finding the culprit. Either way, he would be much closer to finding his crown. This stallion could truly help him, Vajrayana realized. With chagrin, he regretted that he had been so hostile at first.
"I am sorry for being so... aggravated at first." He smiled apologetically at the green stallion. "It's been a very upsetting day, but you did not deserve those accusations." He forced himself to gain yet more calm. Calm mind to help him think.
"My name is Vajrayana. I come from the Padmapani herd." He gestured back towards where the herd lay. If the stallion was local, certainly he'd know of it.
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Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2015 2:53 pm
Hermes grew relieved at Vajrayana's change in tone. He was an empathetic fellow and knew very well how one could act out of strong emotions. He was willing to forgive Vajrayana his lapse in friendliness for that.
"It's all right," he replied. "I'll help you as much as I can today, but I'll be flying back to the village by tomorrow." He wondered if he might be able to stay with their herd for a night. It would be an interesting change of pace from his usual habitat.
"My name is Hermes." Realizing he should explain his previous statement, he added, "I live with the humans of the Kawani village." Sometimes this statement would bring surprise to free-ranging soquili. He could understand that. It was a very different lifestyle, to live among or even near humans.
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Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2015 2:56 pm
That was interesting. Vajrayana hadn't ever met a soquili who spent their time predominantly around humans. He wondered if that explained the quiet and furtive nature of Hermes. Was he unused to conversing with his own kind? On a day with less of a pressing mission, he might have asked Hermes questions. He had always wondered if there was truly some way to speak directly with the humans, or if that was just a tale told to entertain foals.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," he said out of habit. Now, it was time to get back to business. "Which was it it to this colony of eagles you spoke of?"
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Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2015 2:59 pm
"That way." Hermes gestured with a wing. "There are some rocky cliffs not far from here, and they make their nests there." He wasn't too sure what to do about it if one of the eagles had pulled the crown back into a nesting cavity. No soquili could fit in there, even if they could fly close and steady enough to peer in at it. Maybe a shrunken flutter could retrieve it, or someone's familiar.
"It won't take long to get there." He glanced at Vajrayana, then belatedly remembered that he could not fly. It would take longer on the ground than in the air. "But we should start off quickly." He wanted to make sure that they had plenty of hours of daylight to complete their task.
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Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2015 1:39 pm
They walked in pleasant companionship for some time. Hermes had been right. It didn't take long to get there. Vajrayana was able to calm himself more fully in their walk, knowing it would do his cause no good if he came to the eagles upset and agitated. Hermes made that easier. He had a calming sort of presence that made him easy to speak to, but easy to enjoy silence around as well. When they did finally arrive at the face of the cliffs, Vajrayana felt ready.
He looked up at the rocky wall. It was obvious that this was some sort of rookery. Holes stood out among the crags, and feathers and bird droppings abounded. Vajrayana looked sideways at Hermes, knowing that the wind had given good advice thus far.
"Do you know what the best way to speak with these eagles is?" he asked.
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Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2015 1:42 pm
Hermes had enjoyed their walk as well. He had been worried that Vajrayana's urgency would come back and with it his pushy nature, but he came to realize that the first appearance of Vajrayana must have been a fluke inspired by his upset state. He really seemed like a reasonable individual after all. He followed without complaining, and now Hermes could tell that he surveyed the area intelligently.
"I do not," Hermes replied. "But I do believe that they are already aware of our presence." A look over his shoulder verified this. An eagle with a fine red crest of feathers perched on a branch watching them with emerald eyes. Such colorations were not seen on natural birds. This had to be one touched by the spirits.
"Is there someone we can speak to?" Hermes asked the eagle. "We have a question to ask your flock here."
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Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2015 1:46 pm
The eagle bobbed it's head in what Vajrayana could only assume was a nod, and then disappeared. They only had a few moments to wait before an even larger bird appeared, a female and apparently some sort of leader among their group. Vajrayana looked to Hermes for support, but knew that the task of explaining himself rested upon his shoulders.
He did as well as he could in explaining the case, the problem, and what he hoped he would discover from the eagles. He had difficulty reading the expressions off the eagle's beak, but he could tell he was being listened to. At the end, the eagle told them to wait, and then fluttered off back to the cliff.
Vajrayana waited as he was told, wondering if the eagle would return and what news it would have if it did.
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