Lost Among the Tides (Pre-Veil & GF'd)

[Kedyn Rowien]

Timestamp: The Second Brightening of Optia, the Season of Summer, Era XIV Post-Fractum in the Regency of Milo L’Evienne.

There was nothing to do today. That wasn’t unusual though. Not for her, anyway.

The red-haired Quel’athasan Elf shrugged and sat herself down rather heavily on the curb of the road, her thin legs crossing themselves underneath her lithe form. She was here now, in Syl’rosya…her last hope to find some sense of belonging in this strange and rather disgusting continent. It wasn’t Trelore. It was barbaric, horrific. She didn’t like it at all here. She wished she was somewhere, anywhere else.

But there wasn’t anywhere else to be. She and Kisa had braved the wilds of the sea to come here and, from her uncle, gain a chance at a second life. Trelore didn’t want her; her father had made such an opinion quite clear the rean she and her sister had left the island Elfish nation.

So now she was here. Rubbing her pale nose, the young Elf leaned back heavily into the ground. She was here with no purpose, no money, and no place to stay – a stranded, helpless child, lost and listless. There was little hope and fewer dreams for such a lonely soul.

Reaching back behind her, Kedyn hunted in her pack until her fingers lighted upon the wooden smoothness of her flute. Immediately, as her hand touched its edge, the Elf felt a warmth flooding about her body. It was a spirit of familiarity, a sense of belonging – feelings so foreign to her throughout her eras of wandering about the Empire.

She raised the instrument to her thin lips and softly began to blow. The tune was simple, soft, and haunting…whispering of trees and grass bending against a playful wind. The notes wove up and down as the waves of the sunlight twisted about the clouds. It was an ancient lullaby her mother had once hummed to her as she had fallen asleep on her lap, dreaming of lilies and lilacs.

Finally the notes faded away as the flute fell from her mouth. Jade eyes had closed under the force of concentration and, still closed, allowed images of a place far away drift before her consciousness. She hummed, softly, the notes falling about her as petals fell from a tree in springtime.

Time passes by...

[Azurite]

Sitting down on the curb of the road that was known as the Walk of Honor, the main thoroughfare of the southern part of the stockade. The road was immensely busy during the day as it was one of the two southern gates that led through the Restwood and out towards Kyathis and the southern cities of Arakmat. Meaning that while she sat there she was privy to the hundreds of humans and elves that passed by, a few of the elves almost shocked to see her sitting there.

While she played her song, a song recognizable to even less of the elves that passed her she drew a small crowd. The members of the crowd closing their own eyes as they swayed gently to the music as pictures of ancient forests played through their heads. It was a trance that she played a trance that caught the attention of the humans that noticed the elves standing around the young woman.

"Your song is beautiful." A voice as soft and melodic as her song had been, yet not quite as sad spoke as she finished. "I would very much like to hear it again, or perhaps another song." Looking up Kedyn would see a handsome elf dressed in fine clothes standing ahead of the gathered around her.

He was wearing elvish platemail from the neck down, his red plumed helmet in the crook of his arm. The armor was as white as winter snow and was covered in gold filigree that bore resemblance to the elvish language of Trelore. Around his frame a voluminous cloak of deep red covered from his chest and down to his shins and was clasped around his shoulders by large golden medallions.

"I have not heard such a song in such a very long time." He continued, bending down on one knee so as to come eye level with the lady. Kadyn got a better look at him then, the deep lavender hair cascading down his back, the pale purple skin and matching eyes that gave him the color of her people. "My name is Tala'nayn Undromil sworn of E'braeyl yet child of Kard en i' Yrena." Rising he bowed formally to the lady before standing erect again.

Kedyn would undoubtedly recognize the name the elf had just spoken to her. It was one of the minor Star Houses from the Trelorean Continent that hailed from the city of Kailynr that neared Duinostar. He fit the bill for an elf of Trelore, the coloring matched, the build matched and the manners and lilt of his voice were that of her people.

"May I ask your name m'lady?"

[Kedyn Rowien]

Pale pink eyelids fluttered open as the last notes left her lips, still hanging in the air as if afraid to leave their mistress alone. Yet as her eyes finally shimmered in the daylight to take in the surroundings, the last sounds finally faded into nothingness as her lips parted into a wistful smile at the memories the song brought back.

But this wasn’t Trelore, as she kept reminding herself. The young Elf’s smile disappeared as she glanced at the small crowd that had gathered around her. While they might have been Elfs, they were still little better than Humans, these Medonian-dwelling creatures. Her eyes blinked deliberately as the Quel’anthasan let the flute rotate in her palms as she turned to put it away in her bag. Such society would not appreciate the ancient lore of the Quel’anthasan Kingdom, that was for certain.

Then a male voice caught her attention. She looked up, sending auburn hair flying about her face, and then smiled once more, this time out of genuine pleasure. A quick glance over his features immediately told Kedyn of the ancient blood running in his veins, so akin to her own. Her lips parted a bit further and her eyes half-closed flirtatiously, allowing the young she-Elf to look up through a small curl of hair that had fallen against her forehead.

She lived for this game. She had been born for it. “I thank you,” she replied, her tone light, lilting, and playful. Part of this game was allowing the other to read into every word, every comment, much beyond what was merely said. Men liked to hear what they wished to hear, not always what a woman wished to say.

With one forceful push the Elf was off the grounding and standing before the one called Tala’nayn Undromil. Crossing one foot before the other, Kedyn swept the Elf lord a graceful curtsy, just deep enough to be respectful but not quite far enough to be subservient. Of course she recognized the name of Kard en i’ Yrena. She knew the names of all the great Houses of the Kingdom by heart; she had since she was a child.

“You honor me, Heru Tala’nayn Undromil.” Etiquette first, curiosity second. That was how this game was properly played. “I am Kedyn, first daughter of the House Rowien, protectorate of Kard en i’ Eledhwen in Talelena.” Ah, how comfortable it felt to let her lengthy introduction roll off her tongue. It had been eras since she knew such a statement would fall upon understanding ears and she had forgotten how much it meant.

She tilted her head slightly to one side, letting small threads of fiery hair fall freely against her sculpted face. “We are both far from home, it seems,” she said simply.

[Azurite]

"I welcome you to the city of Syl'rosya, Lady of Eledhwen." Bowing again out of respect for the higher ranking noble. "I do agree that both of us are far from home, but this is the natural choice for our people to settle in. Syl'rosya is more like our faraway home then many of us thought possible when first coming here." Looking around the city with its dirt paths and very few paved roads where many patches of green could be seen.

"It isn't much within the stockade, but there are also many wonders that have been created. I would very much like to show them to you if you would allow me, Arwen." Raising his platemailed arm to her he smiled and waited her reply.

[Kedyn Rowien]

A small smile toyed along the corner of her delicate lips and twinkled in the hue of her eyes. This man was making quite the impression on the young Quel’anthasan, and it was definitely of the pleasant sort. “Is it now?” Kedyn asked of the Lord Undromil’s estimation of the city. “Indeed, I have found the Medonian quite foreign to my tastes.”

She nodded softly at the Elf Lord’s offer of a tour of the city. “I would be honored.” With a gentle touch, her hand laid carefully on his outstretched arm while she swung her bag over the opposite side of her lithe form. To say she was intrigued in this man was to put it lightly.

If she closed her eyes long enough, she might even imagine she was home.

[Azurite]

Nodding his head to her he watched her as she slung her bag over her back, wrinkling his nose at this he turned his head slightly. "Dorroen, the ladies luggage if you please." His strong melodic voice ushering an elf far shorter then the two Quel to come forward. The short elf was clearly also Trelorean, but of the Sylvyn race that lived within the Forest of Mists. Relieving the lady of her bag Dorroen retreated a respectable distance from the two as they made their way along the Walk of Honor.

The two strolled quietly down the street, Tala'nayn pointing out the District Amber that ran along the west side of the Walk of Honor from the gates halfway to the Emerald Gardens. Kedyn could see the low marble wall that sectioned it off and the six spiraling white towers that soared into the air representing six of the Aetherians. The largest building within the Amber District was shaped like a giant crabs shell, Tala'nayn explained that the building housed all the religious members of the city, the homeless, orphans, mentally infirm and ill. It was known as the Cloisters of Faith and was one of the holiest buildings in the city apart from the temples for the great amounts of good those that worked within did.

As they continued along the main road they were greeted by the many passerby that said a particular hello to Tala'nayn due to his status as a member of the E'braeyl household. "Ah yes, the politics of The Combine is something you will come to know very well if you chose to stay within Syl'rosya." Saying this with a sigh as he pointed out far distant spires. "That there is the Citadel of Elm within the Opal District, that is where you would want to go if you had any interest in government or law." Lowering his arm he looked ahead. "Ah, good the Emerald Gardens, finally."

They had come to the end of the Walk of Honor and were greeted by a most beautiful site. The dominant feature of the stockade city, the Emerald Gardens, the central park of the cramped city. The dark green and blue grasses shone in the light of the suns, large swaths of multicolored flowers and flower draped bushes could be seen everywhere. Benches of various woods and stone depicting animals and elvish heroes were placed in pairs or around cool running fountains. In the center of the park Kedyn could see the magical hanging gardens of the druids, the many plants and flowers hanging in thin air flowing towards the ground. So too could she see the tree of seasons, the large tree with multicolored leaves to represent the seasons.

"So my lady, tell me what brought you away from the homeland to the land of the Empire?" Asking as they took their first few steps onto the thick grass of the Gardens.

[Kedyn Rowien]

Perhaps she had been too long among the lesser races in this poor excuse for a nation. Every vein in the pale Quel’anthasan’s delicate face flushed a deep crimson as the Lord Undromil gestured his servant toward her bag. Quickly she released her hold on the straps and allowed the smaller Elf to take on the burden, acutely aware of the faux paus she had just committed. Here she was, the first daughter of Kard en i’Rowien of Eledhwen, and she was carrying her own luggage.

She stifled a sigh. If Kisa had been here, her twin would have pinched her to remind her of her manners…though more often than not it had been Kedyn reminding the other of the proper decorum.

The young woman docilely allowed Tala’nayn the freedom to lead wherever he wished, merely resting her hand on his arm out of formality more than an attempt to guide. As he pointed out various landmarks and architectural structure, Kedyn paid polite but not quite genuine attention to his explanations. It was true; Syl’rosya, as a city, pleased the eye to a much greater degree than Imperia or even Diana had. Still, Kedyn couldn’t help a growing sense of homesickness deep within her belly. It wasn’t Talelena. It wasn’t home.

Turning the deeply emerald orbs toward Tala’nayn, the Elf also turned her full attention onto the nobleman, recalling every portion of her consciousness to respond to his words. She smiled brightly with only the barest hint of insincerity in the corners of her delicate lips. “Politics are not unfamiliar to me,” she lilted in her native Old Trelorean tongue. That statement was, indeed, entirely true. From her birth Kedyn had been taught that every word, every action, every motive had a consequence. The trick was to make that consequence beneficial to one’s House.

Smiling softly, she turned her head a bit and dropped her gaze from Tala’nayn’s. “I am certain that with proper instruction I will grow to understand the subtle nuances.” Her free hand went to tuck a small thread of red hair back behind her delicately pointed ear before her eyes followed Tala’nayn’s outstretched hand toward the turrets in the distance and nodded. To be quite honest she had absolutely no interest in law or politics, but politeness required her to at least respond to his description.

Her eyes glittered as the two Quel’anthasans approached a break in the city which Tala’nayn had identified as the Emerald Gardens. She, as much as any of the children of the Ke’trala, appreciated a well-groomed wood or a carefully kept flower bed. Fluttering her eyes closed, Kedyn released her hand from the Lord’s arm and inhaled deeply, reveling in the scent of the earth. A genuine smile crossed her pale face as she returned her gaze toward Tala’nayn.

“I thank you for bringing me here, my lord.” The grace of the Goddess Carmelya was apparent here, filling Kedyn’s senses with a tantalizing run of pleasure that had been so foreign since she had relocated from the island of Trelore. Perhaps she could make such a city her permanent home…it was certainly better than any other Aelyrian city she had previously visited.

Her attention turned back to Tala’nayn as he voiced his question. Her cheeks blushed slightly, although it was hard to tell whether it was the effect of the sunshine or the direct nature of his words. What could she say? She wasn’t about to admit that she had been shunned from her own House for her lack of minor magick. But anything less appeared bland and painted her as a listless, wanderlusting juvenile with no sense of familial responsibility. “A complicated tale, I fear,” she finally answered.

Stretching out her hand, Kedyn let her fingers play against the soft petals of a flower nearest her, enjoying the velvet touch on her skin. “My honorable uncle left the Kingdom for Medonia when the magic barrier fell between the lands due to a misunderstanding. Since he is my father’s brother, my lord father thought it best that I be sent to make amends to restore peace to the House. After finding and speaking with my uncle, I found myself stranded on this continent. The Gods have not been kind in guiding me back to my home.” The Gods had never been kind to the young Elf, but that was beside the point.

[Azurite]

Following Kedyn to the flower bush as she spoke Tala'nayn listened in rapt attention as he stood beside her. Watching her play with the petals he smiled, bending down himself he placed his aquiline nose to the bright bloom and inhaled. Angling his head to look at her he smiled briefly before standing straight once more.

"Ah, the Storm Barrier blocks you path as it does to the many others that wish to return to our ancient home. I'm afraid that you will find no means of a way home within Syl'rosya for there is no such thing." Turning his head to look back at the gate they had just come from he sighed. "The gate that you arrived through is known as the Celestial Amethyst Arch, it was once the gateway between Trelore and this city, it first fell into silence after the fracture of the Aethergem. It was silent up until just an era or so ago when the Princess of Quel was dropped unceremoniously within Syl'rosya. I'm not sure if you heard but it was at that time that the Storm Barrier was once more raised, but also it was the means for the Princess to return home taking a few members of our city with her. Those that ended up in Trelore came back through arcane means they have no means to understand, so there is little hope even here that you will return home." Shaking his head slowly he looked towards the giant forms of the Tree of Seasons and its slightly smaller counterpart the White Yew.

"While you are here m'lady do you have a place to stay or have you not quite figured out if you are staying within Syl?"

[Kedyn Rowien]

Her jade eyes fluttered appreciatively as the young Elf Lord leaned down to whiff the scent of the flower. She left her fingers on the petals and relished the sense of his flesh coming so close to hers. They wouldn’t touch; that wouldn’t be appropriate, not for two members of ancient noble lineage. But she would play with the idea, letting it percolate in her mind…and perhaps seep into his imagination as well. Thoughts were not regulated by propriety.

“Indeed,” the soft voice replied absently. The woman’s ears had registered Tala’nayn’s words but her mind was somewhere else entirely. She had heard, of course, the story of the Princess who had managed to find her way home from being strangely transported to the Meodnian continent. Of course, her story wasn’t as analogous to that as she had lead Tala’nayn to believe. Still, she empathized keenly with the sense of homesickness that drew one always back to the shores of Trelore, whether such a trip was possible or not.

She sighed, this time loud enough for Tala’nayn to hear. Misting over, her eyes idly stared into the horizon, as if seeing the very familiar forests she so longed to touch. “I am afraid you will prove to be correct,” Kedyn said wistfully, turning her emerald orbs back to her task of running her fingers along the arched ridge of the petals. “But I am sure that Phedos will provide.”

A single tendril of auburn hair fell across her left eye. Sweeping it to one side, Kedyn regarded Tala’nayn with a fully straight glance, taking in the svelte figure of the Elfin Lord with observant eyes. What exactly was he proposing? The Quel’anthasan couldn’t deny a sense of curiosity toward the motivations guiding the actions of this young noble, but she also still retained her sense of nobility and superiority. She was, after all, the daughter of House Rowien. She was not obligated to take hand-outs or charity, nor should she.

Or should she? Tala’nayn’s latter estimation of the situation was correct; Kedyn had come to Syl’rosya with little in mind as far as what to do or how to care for herself. She shook her head slightly, her hands folding gently and docilely before her torso. “I fear I am without acquaintance or friend here in the city,” she answered, “and thus without accommodations. I would not presume upon the charity of the noble occupants of the city, however…” Oh, it stung her pride to make such an admission, but there was no way to hide it, particularly not from Tala’nayn’s rather perceptive eyes.