Hearing the whisper she looks at the boy again and nods to him.

"One last lesson for today.  A fighter uses his or her skills to defend themselves or their loved ones when violence is the only option.  Violence is a last resort of a true warrior.  Only bullies use violence as a first resort or as a preferred resort.  Your mind and your words are your best weapons," she smiles at the child again, and carefully wipes some dust off his cheek.  Then she stands and dusts her knees off and nods to Aalistair.

In reply to J'landria (msg #9):

Mirna watches the exchange from the corner of her eye as she looks over the area they are in, taking in the terrain and passers by.

Callianos stretches his lean frame as he steps out of the Grey Tower, his merry green eyes and his mischievous grin lighting up his face.

He casts his glance about, seeking anything to capture his interest here in this dusty little town.

"So quiet... methinks I need to start something up. It's still early in the day yet, I have some time," he mutters to himself.

His grin broadens as he considers his options.

The tents north of town appear to be dominated by Arimites and Marukans, with a few green-skinned Cymrilians.

The boy looks very seriously at J'landria, first wary, poised as if to run, but when she laughs, he erupts into a boisterous laughter as well.  He then chases off after another child, and from among the tents you hear laughter and the *thwack* of sticks striking together.

Moving on, you come through the tents and into the town proper, such as it is.  You stand at the north end of a single road, with buildings along it.  You are directly next to a large, blocky white building.  In the distance, the rest of the road is dominated by a large tower of grey stone halfway down the road, and a clearly Cymrilian structure of green crystal at the far end.

_____________________________________________________________________


Midway through the town, Callianos walks into the street, and looking around, sees some early traffic of townfolk going about their business.

Then, catching your eye, you see a windship floating up to dock majestically at the green tower.

J'landria watches the boy dash off and shakes her head.  She walks past Aalistair and into the town proper.  Her ears are shifting and moving and so is her head as she tries to take in all the different types of people.  She stands there, her eyes wide and her ears turning and locking for a moment, to turn and lock somewhere else.  Her tail thrashes back and forth a few times and she makes another purring sound, this time quieter, as if she's trying to soothe herself.

Slowly she backs up to a wall of a building so that she can feel something solid behind her and she watches the variety of people move about.

In reply to GM (msg #12):

Upon seeing the windship Jaxar immediately examines the craft to determine if it is their missing ship or another craft. Turning to Mirna he comments, "I am headed to the tower to inquire about our friends. The sooner we find them the sooner we can be sure they are safe."

After pausing for a moment for comments from the group he heads toward the tower. Knowing the sorts that often frequent small towns on the edge of civilization he remains alert, carefully considering his surroundings and the villagers as he approaches the green crystal spire and the docking windship.

J'landria watches Jaxar pass with a little curiosity.  Her face expresses some kind of longing as he moves comfortably through the people milling about.  She sighs then once he's gone out of reach and shakes her head, keeping her back to the building she adjusts her posture.  Copying the stance her father once had when he was bored with the council of elders.  She shifts, pulling her feet away from the building and making it so that only her shoulders are pressed against the rough wood.  Her arms fold over her chest as she tucks her chin, and her tail is given the room to swing and twitch as freely as she'd like.  She returns to "people watching" with a sigh, trying to hide her discomfort with the whole situation.

"I need to stop in here," says Aalistair pointing to the squat white building nearby. He looks around at these new comrades. "They need to be informed about the loss of the pilgrims so that word can be sent back home, their deaths recorded, and the time of mourning begun. I shall not be overly long. Perhaps I shall catch up with some of you about town soon. Should, for some reason, you require assistance before then you can always inquire after my whereabouts here at the White Hand of Aa."

In reply to Jaxar (msg #14):

"I will go with you. I'm not entirely comfortable with any of us going of solo."

((OOC: Kar, are you still circling overhead or have you joined with the rest of us poor ground pounders? :) ))

Jaxar's sharp eyes spot the windship coming into the dock, and he sees that it is not the Wind of Fate, from the markings upon it.

He and Mirna quickly stride through the town, passing many people on their way; Aamanians in white robes, an Orgovian, four Arimite miners,  two Pharesian peddlers, a Sarista man,  and a trio of Cymrilian soldiers.

Halfway through town, Mirna and Jaxar pass the large grey stone building, and see the windship approaching the green tower to dock.

In reply to GM (msg #18):

*Noting the general progress of the others, Kar decides to join at the tower*

*Circling the tower, looking for a good landing/roosting spot, and evaluating defenses and any people either on the tower or ship*

Kar attracts some looks as he wings his way over the town.

He gets extra attention as he approaches the Green Tower.  "Ho there!" calls a guard at the tower.  "Halt, and approach slowly!"  Kar's sharp eyes spot archers and a ballista trained on him.  The soldiers appear wary, but not overtly hostile.

J'landria's ears perk up and her attention is turned to the shouts from the tower.  She looks to see Kar in the air and then turns away.  Her easy position changes slightly so that her hands are on her hips, closer to her weapons.  Her physical posture speaks of boredom, but her ears are intent on the goings on.  Her eyes go back to scanning the people moving about and her tail gives one big swish before going back to smaller and more subtle movements.

In reply to GM (msg #20):

Mirna watches the guard as Kar descends, shifting her stance so that she can move easily to his defense, if needed.

Mirna and Jaxar are still a good ways off from the Green Tower, only about half way down the road towards it.  Assuming Kar lands and approaches, the guards will visibly relax.

In reply to GM (msg #23):

Wraith Zephyr descends from the Green Tower and immerses himself within the motley throng.  Dust immediately clings to his attire, not matter how much he brushes it from him with his gauntlets.  After awhile, he resigns himself to the dust, and presses forward.

*Kar backwings, looks to the tower's defenders, and decides that he has no need to fear them unless he runs. He then approaches as requested*

"Hail all. I mean no threat."
*Kar obviously unreadies the crossbow and puts it on his side while approaching, and the duar is shouldered*

*As he lands he folds his wings down*
To the one who spoke earlier "Nice view of the whole city from here"

As Kar lands and addresses the guards, they visibly relax.  The guardsman at the gate even smiles as he greets him, "Hail, a Gryph from the forests of Tamaranth!  Well met!  Sorry for the unfriendly greeting, but we are sometimes harassed by Stryx flying over from Urag.  How may we assist you?"

While Kar and the guardsman address one another, Jaxar and Mirna approach, still striding down the road.

In the meantime, the windship docks, and it can be seen, the pilot jumps lightly onto the docking platform, descends the tower, and enters the street.  He is immediately covered in the dust of the street, and begins brushing it from is fine clothing.

[See Wraith Zephyr's entry above...]

In seeing the windship make its approach, and the group that has headed the way of the green tower, Callianos moves towards the area. He watches the Gryph there as he makes his approach, intrigued by the presence of one such.

He glides gracefully past the Danuvian, bristling with weaponry and standing in a momentarily defensive pose, almost brushing her shoulder with his own in his passing.

"Excuse me, warrior," he says with a slight smile and a short, respectful nod of his head, turning his merry green eyes back to the Gryph after meeting hers only briefly.

"Greetings, friend from Tamarath!" Callianos addresses the Gryph as he steps in beside him.

He offers the Gryph a bow and a broad smile.

"It has been long since I have seen one of your kind, it is my pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Callianos, minstrel and traveler."

J'landria relaxes a bit when the guards relax.  She sees others talking and while she wants to join in, she is very wary of all the strange people around.  Her face is set in a grimace as she approaches, her eyes scanning for the one non-Jaka she knows, the Orgovian Trader.  She lets out a growling sigh, one hand resting on her hip the other hanging down beside her, she walks toward the others she just met the day before.  Her tail gives the odd heavy swish with little twitches in between and her ears are on the move as well as her eyes.

Mirna shifts away and tenses as Callianos brushes past, responding to his "excuse me" with a brief nod and relaxes slightly. Her eyes scan the group, watching for potential threats.

In reply to Mirna (msg #29):

Smiling slightly, Jaxar comments to Mirna, "It's nice to see someone else getting all of the attention for once, even if it is our new friend Kar. I get the impression he's not big on city life." His smile fades as his gaze passes over the windship again, "That's definitely not our ship. Hopefully there will be word from Arkannon at the tower. We might also ask the captain of this vessel if he has encountered the 'Fate' during his journey here."

Sighing deeply he continues his thought, "I was counting on finding the ship here. I feel compelled to aid my kinswoman, J'landria, but I do not want to desert our friends on the ship either. They may be counting on our aid"

After the span of perhaps a quarter hour, Aalistair emerges from the Hand of Aa. Standing in front of its white washed doors, he surveys the length of the town as if looking for someone.

Resigned to allowing the saffron-colored dust to cling to his fine garments, Wraith languidly wanders down a broad thoroughfare, searching for a place to moisten his pallet.  The arid climate has made him quite thirsty.

"I can't imagine the swill that passes for spirits," he says to himself, pursing his lips and dragging his fingers through silver hair.  "Perhaps I'll stumble upon someone who can tell me something about the whereabouts of The Fate." 
This message was last edited by the player at 19:42, Sun 30 May 2010.

Seeing the windship pilot approach,  Jaxar takes a deep breath to still his apprehension.

As the Cymrilian passes Jaxar quietly addresses him, "Pardon me pilot, I beg a question. In your recent travels have you happened across another windship, going by the name of 'the Fate'? We were supposed to rejoin our companions days ago but they, and the ship, failed to rendezvous with us at our appointed time and location. We seek information regarding their whereabouts and thier situation."