Seeking Answers In A City Filled With Questions (open)

[Viskyia Crow]

The first day of Ponutis, Spring, Era I, XIV (pf)

Even though there had been some cleanup, she knew it was bad. Most of the main buildings were gone. The streets were run to mud in the rain, and there were signs of strive everywhere. Her face remained impassive as she rode through the city. But she did keep her eyes on Amelia. Viskyia worried. Her friend's particular gifts ran towards interaction with the dead. And she simply couldn't imagine the dead not being all around them in spirit. But, Amy had wanted to come, and the trip was good for her, thought Viskyia, first things first.

Lodging. Stabling the horses. Food. Once they got themselves settled, they'd be far better off without worrying for the animals or where their rest was coming that night. Viskyia wondered, though, just how much rest Amelia would get. But they'd try. Viskyia needed answers, and she'd waited long enough to get them, it seemed. The story was an old one, filled with a broken promise and a girls cry of rape deep in the night. The half-esh had warned Selena not to go off seeking revenge. She'd tried to make the girl stronger, wiser, and to teach her that revenge best came with time and unexpected patience. Everything happened for a reason. Everything. But in the end, Viskyia decided Selena had not wanted to wait, and had felt herself strong enough to try and rescue her brother. That could be the only explanation. Couldn't it? People just couldn't have disappeared in the middle of the night. Not without cause. Viskyia glanced again at Amelia. She hoped her friend understood her need to know. She perhaps did...she was here wasn't she? It was another thing to worry about, but Viskyia accepted it. The half-esh did not want to get to the place in her heart where independence overwhelmed everything else and friends were more trouble than they were worth. Amelia definitely was worth it.

Back to getting settled though. First things first. Then she could begin her search. She had a name, a good idea of rank, and several dozen Moonstars about Paxia to question mercilessly if all else failed.

But she had no clue where any of this could be found. She'd start, however, at the Limelight. It was easy to find, and in no time she was standing in front of it, contemplating why she'd come with no expression whatsoever on her face. Something told her this wasn't going to be a fun trip. No, not fun at all. And she signed deeply, unprepared for for the onslough od requests tas

[Keldon Elsdragon]

Standing near the limelight was Keldon with two naval engineers, in front of them was a large table and a tent established behind them with various things the engineer was selling however the table is where the men where focused. From the looks of it they were discussing the placement of the towers for the civilian and military harbor however one seemed to think they would be better placed in a specific location and the other had there own opinions. Keldon was in the middle listening to both there arguments. "Alright fine, the city is to be a fortress so we will use both. Place large towers at the mouth of the entrance here, and here. Then smaller towers a warship length apart from one another until the main gate house. At the gate house and ever...." he paused and thought. "Third tower place a larger tower for battlement in placement," he said looking to both men where one agree and the other sighed thinking his army engineering was correct. Although Keldon planned to combine both army and naval engineering in the city.

As Viska walked by Keldon raised his head to look at the women briefly, she was rather attractive to say the least and the, presence to say around the women was curious yet the women seemed of little importance however he nodded his head to her in greeting with a smile.

[Viskyia Crow]

Viskyia scanned the area around the Limelight as a part of the way she normally interacted with the world. She would never walk into a situation unguarded, or ignore the world around her without identifying all the potential hazards. And here, in this place, there were quite a few. Off to one side, the tent was noticeable, so were the officers. Perhaps she wouldn't even need to enter the tavern after all. Viskyia looked closer under the auspice of securing her mare They weren't Falcons either. Legion then... and ranking, by the look of their uniform. She took her time, making Mirrow's knots fast, and then straightened the white cloak she wore and turned towards the Legionnaires.

Her steps were measured, careful, and the cloak concealed all of her form but her pale face, her white . Beneath it, she had her throwing knives, her fighting daggers, and disciplined art form that she held tightly to her. Viskyia kept her breath measured, and her expression empty. There were questions... so she approached the men.

"Serale, Legionnaires. Would one of you, by chance, be the Provost Elsdragon?" She asked, searching the insignias on their uniforms and deciding one indeed appeared to be higher rank than the others. But she had no idea if he was the man she was seeking.

[Keldon Elsdragon]

Keldon looked down again to the papers so he did not see the women approach until she spoke. At first he did not look up as his mind was wrapped around a question in the placement of the walls to adjoining section of the city, however when the naval officer spoke he smirked and looked up. "Pardon me miss, however the uniform I am wearing is that of the nav...." he said but being cut short by Keldon's voice. "Thats enough," the Provost's voice said with a smirk and then looked to Viskya nodding his head.

"Sometimes the navy can be somewhat... touchy about there uniform. But hold it to no concern in the least. I would indeed be Provost Elsdragon milady," He said with a gentle bow of his head. "But the question is, what one with stunning eyes has with a military man." he said with a warm smile and awaited a reply.

[Viskyia Crow]

Viskyia glanced at the naval officer, and nodded despite the fact that he had just been cut short. She understood the gist of what he was going to say. "I apologize for the mistake. I am an inlander by nature, and I do not often come across those who serve bravely upon the sea." The statement was spoken softly, with conviction and she met the soldier's eyes before turning to the Provost.

She studied him, making no bones about the fact that she was. There was no open curiosity on her face. In fact, her expression was rather blank, as if a mask was settled firmly in place. But he'd know... the woman before him was weighing him, judging him, and somehow... had yet to make a final judgment. It took her a long while to finally speak, and when she did, it was softly.

She ignored the comment. He would not, after all, know how much she hated the color of her eyes. They were citrine on the whim of her sire, who fancied yellow his favorite color. And that man, indeed, was no one she respected. "I do not know if you will recognize my name, but I am Viskyia Crow, a jeweler of Nexus Prime. I sent you a correspondence some months ago via my brownie associate Furloin Thimblequick." And with that she waited, letting the words settle into the air. What she was watching for was a reaction, of any sort... and that perhaps would draw her conclusion on Keldon's character to a summation.

[Keldon Elsdragon]

The Provost nodded and then turned to the two men beside him, "Your dismissed gentlemen, we will continue this discussion later." he said in a slightly emotionless voice however a hint of dispare was in his voice then he looked upto the women. "Yes Lady Crow I remember the letter quite well, it is in my pocket infact, along with Lady Ile Andra's statement..." he said rising to his full height now, no longer leaning on the table. "Please come inside," he said with a gentle nod, the smile gone from his face as he moved inside the tent, the army officer remained outside the entrance.

Once Viskya was inside Keldon turned to the doorway. "Release the flap please and pay no heed to any words you may hear from within." he said moving to one of the tables and leaned against the desk with his rear and looked to Viskya and slowly started to speak. "I thank you for your actions Lady Crow... they pointed me to a grave injustice... how is it exactly I can help you where I have failed to help Selena..." he said the end of his voice cracked slightly. Keldon was a man of power and strength but this topic, this topic could bring him to his knees or give him the strength of thousands.

[Viskyia Crow]

The half-esh allowed him to escort her inside, then took a breath to survey the inside of the tent. Viskyia quickly accessed the exits, the potential dangers, and automatically cataloged the weapons therein before she turned back to the Provost.

"With all due respect, please explain what you mean when you say you failed to help Selena?" The jeweler stated, again not a flicker of emotion in her eyes. Her voice was even, but firm. She was not a woman that would take a casual comment casually when it was weighted with such meaning. Deeper, down where she shoved the baggage she would assess later, guilt began to build. It was worse than she thought. The half-esh had depended upon people she didn't even know to look after someone she considered a close personal friend.

The deeper question was would she care? Could she? Selena had been warned. The girl knew the risks. And she had given Viskyia her word. What did that mean now? Within Viskyia, a fury built, but she had yet to decide towards whom it was directed; Selena, her assailant, this provost, or herself.

[Keldon Elsdragon]

Keldon nodded, "After the letter was delivered to me I rode to Vortex to arrest her capture, some two hundred men accompanying me. However after his arrest he killed four men and escape, after removing the man from authority within the city there was no trace of Selena, and even after searching for her there was no location to look next. Although I still have people looking, we know not where to look..." he sighed deeply once more. "Nor do we know if she even lives, given the mans rage and the fact that he no longer holds power in Vortex I fear he had her killed." he smirked. "But my hopes remain high that she lives, and the search for the man who held her also remains. This time he is not only wanted by myself, but by the Empire itself."

[Viskyia Crow]

Viskyia nodded. It was a brief explanation, but she required no lengthy discourse. However, perhaps they had a bit of luck on their side. Events had arranged themselves to see if his words held truth or not. Amelia was with Viskyia, and although she wasn't as far along in her studies as she might have hoped to be, the vagaran had educated Viskyia enough in the ways of the spirit that the half-esh thought perhaps there was a way to check to see if someone suspected of being dead was in fact dead.

She would share none of this with Keldon though. Not with a man who would smirk over the thought of someone's death. Viskyia searched his face, looking for any sign that the man was in mourning. There was none, but then again, he had stated that the letter was in his pocket in fact. What did that mean? She nodded once more, as if responding to her inner dialog. "She should have heeded my warnings and honored her word. Selena was very fond of you. I thought perhaps the child she carried was your own. My sympathies to you, if indeed it was." The jeweler held no punches, figuring a man of the military needed none.

[Keldon Elsdragon]

At the last statement Keldon blinked slight and a gentle tear rolled down the cheek farthest from Viskya and he nodded. "The gods shall not stand in my way should Selena be alive, I was as fond of her as she was I. Time with her is something that I hold closest to me then all else, there is little beauty in this world that could compare to hers." he paused for a moment. "But hope remains until confirmation is given regardless of the odds, and until that confirmation comes I shall not give up hope that she lives, nor shall I stop searching.." He said looking to the table which was lined with documents of the cities structures to come, yet no defense even one created by him and his men would stop Keldon from reaching Selena should he find her location.

[Viskyia Crow]

Viskyia nodded again. "Thank you for your time, Provost. I do appreciate the information you've given me. If there is any news of her, will you send me word in Nexus Prime? I promise to do the same for you as well. There is a way, I think, to check to see if Selena is in the spirit world. If she is there, we will know for sure. If she is not, there is still hope. If I can arrange for such a thing to be done, and I find her there, I will send you a piece of parchment dyed black. If she is not present, I will send you one untouched... blank of word." Viskyia looked thoughtful. The jeweler hadn't meant to admit that she could perhaps arrange for this, but if it was possible, she'd somewhere along the way decided Keldon perhaps might deserve to know.

"Now, one last question, and I will take my leave. Is the tent housing the only available in the city currently? Myself and my female companion need to find a safe place to spend the night." She said, knowing next she'd go visit Roland and Adelyn.... and they too might have suggestions for a nights lodging.

[Keldon Elsdragon]

Keldon thought a moment then nodded. "Yes, if I hear anything I will contact you shortly afterwards that is without a doubt. You took the time to contact me and I would do the same for you Lady Crow. Should... you find out if she is passed from this world I would request you let me know. I am aware of how one would so such a thing, and care not. Confirmation would put this soul at ease, but hope always remains with me." He said with a glint smile.

"As for accommodation's, I can give you some safe shelter near my quarters. The building is not made of stone a small structure but with the amount of security it has you and your guest will be safe none the less."

[Viskyia Crow]

Viskyia nodded. "Thank you. It would be greatly appreciated if you do so. And I will indeed send word of what we find. And as for the accommodation... that would be also appreciated. It would be for me and a companion over one night or perhaps two. I will of course return the favor if you ever have need in Nexus Prime." She said gratefully, suddenly tired. It was just now hitting her that Selena might be dead.

Viskyia had mixed feelings on it. Part of her would mourn. Yet, part of her wouldn't... that part that wouldn't would simply say she got what she deserved, ranging so far away from her promises. The whole situation was tragic, really. Just tragic.

Viskyia gave a soft sigh that conveyed her weariness, and then managed a smile for the Provost.

[Keldon Elsdragon]

Keldon smiled, or atleast made an attempt to do so. "I appriciate the offer milady, and perhaps one day I will take you up on it." Keldon said as he stood up and moved towards the exit of the tent. "If there is nothing else Viskyia I must return to my duties, the city needs to be restored and I already have a Minister of the Crown down my back for reports." He said with a glint smile and would motion her out of the tent.