After the raid on Uongo, Amethyst had found it much more difficult to stay asleep. Each time she slipped into rest She would be haunted by the gruesome sights and smells she had experienced in the Aqueducts. Her mind echoed with the phantom claws of the dead trying to catch and devour her. The dreams were made worse with visions of Ebba and her bleeding throat. The image that had been pressed into imagination was a babbling Ebba asking in Tenya's voice why she didn't use her water magic to help Sven.
Logically Amethyst knew that she didn't have such a control over her powers then. But that wouldn't stop her from blaming herself. When those pieces of Ebba, Sven and the Aqueducts all come together with her nightmares of being a slave, the puzzle becomes much more challenging to envision. The mishmash of dream components act as a splatter of reality and dream that cause Amethyst to jolt up in the middle of the night. She often forgot where she was when these dreams came knocking at the forefront of her mind.
Amethyst had stood and left the shared pavilion that night, unwilling to face the monsters which fed on her fear as she slept. Though dreams like these had always been a part of her psyche. Even since she was a child, her dreams focused on being lost, or tortured in ways she would never repeat. She bundled herself tightly in a thick woolen blanket. She didn't notice its itchy texture as she exited the tent. She could smell not only the river, but also the hints of sea air. These prominent smells reminded her of The Sewers.
She hadn't realized that her mind had shifted away from the scorching sands of her recent traumas. Instead the focus shifted to the awful torture of rotting in The Sewers. She imagined the piles of bodies she witnessed in the Aqueducts smashed into the small cell she had found herself in for nearly a decade. Amethyst passed by small tired fires and closed off tents. She didn't know where she was wandering to in her escape from sleep.
Towards the edge of camp, Amethyst found a small stone to sit on. It had been worn from years of other lost souls unable to sleep. As she laid back she felt an odd comfort. The rock was still warm as she sank back against its immovable shell. It hadn't occurred to her that there was someone standing just in front of her. That she may have taken the very seat that person had been using up until moments before. She didn't see the gentle golden glow of the one-eyed Garba looking down at her. Amethyst was blinded by the visions of a life long past and it's melding with a more recent pain which consumed her regardless of the victory she had claimed in rescuing Tenya's daughter.
Her trance didn't last too long as a stiff Icy breeze woke her to the tall cat in front of her. Amethyst felt a pang in her heart, followed by a rush of Adrenalin Knocking her out of the stupor she had begun her evening with.
"Oh, I'm sorry..." Amethyst said while pressing harder into the rock which refused any give in her breathless plight.
Garba sighed, then sat on a rock next to her. Amethyst could tell that the rock was much less comfortable. She didn't know why that stuck out to her. Nor did she understand why she was so clearly fixated on that uncomfortable rock and its uneasy inhabitant.
When no response readily came from the stoic figure, Amethyst made her attempt to escape this situation too. She readied her feet and engaged her muscles, but she did not move. Though she pressed hard she felt like she did when she was a child. Stuck to a tree like a branch while men came to capture her. It was not fear what gripped her, however, but a sense that the one in front of her was suffering silently like she was. So, despite her exertion She let herself relax back into that rock which fit her perfectly. Her tail slowed its flick as she looked over at Garba.
"Are you okay?" Amethyst asked in Garba's native language. Her rune vibrated, tickling the back of her throat. She cleared the tickle with a soft cough she covered with the blanket.
Garba remained stoic. He continued looking forward, away from Amethyst towards the northern horizon. She imagined Garba looking to escape a marred past. Like Wa Chini, it was likely he was captured and made a slave too considering what Bontu had said. When no answer came, Amethyst looked away from Garba towards the northern horizon. Tomorrow, she and everyone else would be bunked on ships that would pass the watery gap which would lead them to Neopolis.
Quietly the two sat for a while. The silence gave way to the sounds of wind rustling through the palms nearby. The crickets and frogs singing their mating symphonies, unaware that they were one part in the larger orchestra of the night. The dim lights of fires had dull shadows dancing on the ground in front of them. Cold breezes bit through the worn blanket, The small holes allowing traces of foreign cold to soak up the little heat trapped inside her blanketed cocoon.
Then after several minutes of chilled silence, Garba spoke in a whisper, his grumbly deep voice sliced through the Icy air. "No."
Amethyst looked over at him. He hadn't moved from his pedestal. He was a statue, worn and weathered, then forgotten here. His resolute answer which likely came after much deliberation felt much deeper to Amethyst than any long winded explanation he could have given. Not to say that if he had given such an answer that she would be any less satisfied to continue listening.
"Is it because of Wa Chini?" Amethyst said softly, as she shifted to face him. She saw no sign of movement from him. Amethyst had adjusted to the dim light and could see him more clearly. Without the rush of the earlier bout between the two cats, she could see the damage this old statuesque cat really had.
His fur was marred by scars of many kinds. She could clearly see where the old and new met together in the crossroads of battle. Though Wa Chini had some scars, Garba looked to be the practice dummy. Bits of his fur had grown patchy along what Amethyst had assumed to be burns. From head to toe, there was as much scarring as there wasn't. He wore equipment that was rough and old. The tarnished bronze and rusted iron showed signs of extensive use.
Garba didn't respond for a while again. Amethyst had grown to wonder if he had heard her.
"Yes, Wa Chini's presence has soured my day quite aggressively." Garba said coldly.
Amethyst could hear more behind his words. She could tell there was a deeper meaning behind what he said. She waited. Waited for long minutes as she watched him think.
Garba crossed his arms firmly. "I was already in a somewhat foul mood." He said, his voice carrying the zest of depression or maybe defeat. He looked down briefly, then turned to Amethyst facing her fully. He let out another sigh before he dropped his elbows to his knees. He slouched forward and grasped his hands. "Wa Chini's appearance was a shock I had not predicted."
Amethyst could tell by the look on his face, the way his one focused away from her, refusing to meet her eyes. Even when he was no longer facing the fire, his Eye still glowed a dim, but noticeable gold. She thought it a trick of the light, but could tell then that there was something more to it. She wanted to ask about his eyes. Why one was covered and the other glowed. She wanted to ask about his scars and about what had happened between the two of them. Amethyst held no sense of fear while facing him. She had no worry that this might be a predictor which could drag her off in the middle of the night. Like so many of the people she had met recently, she only saw a hurting person in need of help.
In silence they both waited.
Garba ran one of his hands through the thin fur on his head. "I think he is right to be upset." He seemed uncomfortable but continued. "Even so, I will not be rolling over. He also has a lot to answer for."
"Why not talk to him about it?" Amethyst asked, her soft voice like a soothing lullaby.
"It is not so simple... There has been too much... Too much history and too much time." Garba's stone figure crumbled away as his ear flattened. The other ear looked to have been torn off partly, leaving only a small amount of flesh poking out of the garb covering patchy sections of his head and face. "It does not matter where it started, nor where it will end." He fiddled nervously with his hands. His tail flicked wildly back and forth before he grabbed it. He held tightly to it like Amethyst would. He twisted and stroked it while his ears remained low.
"I think those are wise words, May I add to them something I was once told by a wiser man." Amethyst stretched her hand out and placed it onto Garba's nervous hands.
Garba's head shot up to look at her, then darted around. As though searching for an ambush. He looked up and let his eye steady on her eyes.
"We should always try our hardest--"
"Until we are dead. " Garba interrupted. His eye blinked rapidly for a moment. He stood up and looked back down to Amethyst. "Did Wa Chini say that?" His voice broke as he asked.
Amethyst nodded her head. She felt there was no need for words. It appeared she was right as Garba nodded too. He stood silently for a bit. His tail still in his hand, gripped tightly. His form started to shake a little as he took in a sharp breath.
"What is your name?" Garba asked hesitantly.
"Amethyst." She replied quietly, matching his sober voice.
Garba nodded once more. "Then Miss Amethyst, I am Garba. Garba Morkataa." He bowed slightly. "I promise that today's events will not happen again, but make no expectations that we shall be cordial outside of working together."
"I really appreciate your words." Amethyst stood and put her hand out.
Garba stared before putting his paw gripped her wrist. Amethyst followed Garba's lead, matching his grip. She could tell that although he gripped tightly, He had no claws on that paw. Garba let go, then turned away wordlessly and disappeared from Amethyst's vision.
Amethyst yawned, then went back to the pavilion to try and sleep again.
§
Amethyst woke the next morning to the familiar warmth of Tenya pressed against her back. She could tell that Tenya was facing Amethyst's back and that one of her hands was gripped lightly around the base of Amethyst's tail. Amethyst felt it was much too early to be feeling the butterflies. What's more, The rest of the tent, Including Ebba, had left save Busara, who was whittling not far from where he had laid the night before.
She slowly wriggled out of Tenya's grasp. She stood and stretched hard as she looked down at Tenya. She felt herself become light headed and everything started to go black. So she kneeled low with her head hung down.
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"You stood up too quickly." Busara remarked. He held a small cylinder and was fussing over its details.
"Not an uncommon occurrence." Amethyst said, the ringing fading quickly away. She felt the rushing in her head subside as she slowly raised herself back to her feet.
"Take this from an old man, take it slower." Busara said, turning his attention to Amethyst.
Amethyst looked more closely at Busara as well. He had whittled a couple small figures that were sitting on a scrap of leather. He had found a chair, which looked like one that Stochastís had taken from Ponáei's. It looked like Stochastís had considered his hips and legs as well as all the necessities to travel.
"What are you carving, grandfather?" Amethyst said with a smile.
Busara chuckled. "These are Idols of my fallen family, and lost son. I have no intention to return to this land. So I must carry a vessel of sorts made from the tree which stood atop the hill my home once had." Busara looked back down to the Idols he had so lovingly crafted. "This so that their soul may choose to follow me. I couldn't just die in a far away land without some way of us returning to each other."
Although Amethyst had different beliefs for what happened after one died, She made no mention of it as she responded. "I think it to be a wholesome tradition. Nothing is more important than family." She smiled warmly at Busara.
He shared his smile in similar fashion. "You are wise beyond your years."
"If that is the case, it is because I surround myself with wise individuals like you." Amethyst retorted.
Amethyst Exited the tent after a few pleasantries were exchanged. She could feel the chill breeze against her bare skin while anywhere the sun could see she felt a slight burning there. She stretched again as she watched the bustle of camp being broken down. She saw Nuru talking with Bontu while Garba and Wa Chini kept a wide berth from each other as they loaded carts. Amethyst felt a firm smack against her waist. She looked down to see Ebba had wrapped herself around Amethyst's torso. She was gone in a flash with a hurried "Good morning!" Before nearly colliding with a man carrying a box.
"Watch it Pup!" The man yelled.
"Sorry mister!" Ebba called back.
The man had a smile as he shook his head. In less than an hour, the camp had been fully packed up. A groggy Tenya had taken Amethyst's arm in hers while they walked. She leaned on Amethyst, threatening to fall asleep while walking.
Amethyst could hear sea birds screeching and swarming around while they walked along the last bit of their journey to the seaside. Before the caravan stopped for lunch, Amethyst was walking alongside Stochastís who rode sleepily on the camel originally meant for Nuru. Nuru had no need for it as she had taken a cart with Busara and Bontu.
Stochastís had started to sway a little. Garba made his way to the side of the camel just as Stochastís slipped off. Amethyst watched in what felt like slow motion as Stochastís awoke to his falling in horror. His eyes went wide as he floated quickly un aided towards the sand below.
Garba, having seen the inevitability of the fall had already strategically placed himself by the camel. So as Stochastís fell, Garba took action, grabbing the reins of the camel, assuring it did not bolt when spooked as Stochastís struck the ground.
Amethyst rushed to Stochastís who was groaning on a layer of thick sand. He started laughing in-between groans. Amethyst couldn't help herself but join in. Garba was shushing the camel with his declawed paw.
"It is not funny." Garba said seriously. "The Camel could have been injured." Garba looked between Stochastís, who was on his back squinting up at Garba, and Amethyst, who was kneeling down beside him.
Both Stochastís and Amethyst burst out in laughter. Garba muttered some obscenities while he pet and talked to the camel. Amethyst was able to observe the details she missed in the previous night's encounter.
Garba has spots similar to Wa Chini, but they were much darker, only perceptible in the light of the sun shining directly on him. All his other features were much clearer, but there was not much more to distinguish from that previous meeting.
Amethyst and Stochastís stood up with each other's help. Stochastís dusted himself off and moved to return to the top of the camel's back. Garba, however, prevented him from doing so. There was a tense moment between the two. She hadn't seen Stochastís be as serious.
Garba with his arms crossed tightly said, "You have been atop the camel long enough if you fell asleep. Where is your chivalry?"
Stochastís's face turned to confusion as Garba grabbed Amethyst under shoulders. Like one would do with a child, Garba lifted Amethyst up. An adjacent rock provided him an adequate step as he placed Amethyst upon the camel.
Stochastís laughed, "Oh I see." He let his head rest on one hand and his other hand supported his elbow. "Forgive me my lady fair, I should have offered for the maiden to ride."
Amethyst meanwhile was lost. Like the bursting of a dam, a memory came flooding to her from her childhood. She couldn't recall how old she was, but she could see a man with dark skin and white hair. The same figure which she had seen when she was rescued from the Serpent Guard with Tenya. The man was slender and she could make out his red eyes and pointy ears. all the lost features were as sharp as if she had just seen them.
"Here you are kiddo." The man had said as he gently put her on a horse.
She was giggling and he was smiling as the man walked the horse around. She felt the same feeling of comfort and safety she had with family. Then she could see her grandfather walk into view, and a pang of fear hit her for some reason.
The man followed her gaze to see her grandfather walking up. The man's shoulders tensed and he stood up straighter. "What do you want, old man?"
"You can't just take the horse off the carousel and give her free rides." Her grandfather spat. He reeked of smoke and other familiar yet unnamable scents. He had a cigarette in one hand and she could see his special adult pouch partially open.
"Oh a big circus man huh, cant even let your granddaughter enjoy a fucking ride on a horse you cheapskates'." The man stood resolutely between her and her grandfather.
"It costs money to feed and re-shoe these horses." Her grandfather said, taking a long drag of his cigarette. "I am not running a charity, we gotta eat too ya know." He said squinting over his glasses.
"Oh fuck you and your bushtit excuses." The man said stepping forward. "I pay for the food you eat you slouch, last time I checked I also paid for this horse to be re-shoed this past spring." The man started to poke an accusatory finger at her grandfather.
"As is your responsibility as my granddaughter's father." He smiled again as he stared at the man he called Amethyst's father in the eyes.
The two men stood resolutely before the man turned back to Amethyst. "Sorry kiddo, it seems your grandfather has other plans for the horses today."
"But I want to ride the donkey daddy." Amethyst could remember saying. her soft little voice no more than that of a toddler.
"That's a horse baby, and we can play horsey back at my cart." He said as he lifted Amethyst off the small horse.
"But I want the real donkey!" Amethyst protested, her arms crossed tightly.
"I know, I'll make you a little treat too huh?" He asked in a soothing cooing voice.
"Okay." Amethyst said dejectedly.
"Wait." Her grandfather said connivingly. "There is still the matter of payment for the time you rode and an additional fee for unauthorized use of my property."
The man reached into a pocket on his long jacket and opened it up. He tossed the contents which struck her grandfather lightly then clattered to the ground. "There is a tip in there for the inconvenience of counting yourself."
Her grandfather dropped to the ground quickly counting and picking up the coins he scavenged from the grassy floor.
Amethyst's father looked down at her grandfather, A man who looked much more like Amethyst, but with lighter skin and two uncut horns with glasses.
"You are a fucking parasite, a leach on your family." Her father said, then spat at the ground next to him.
Amethyst looked up at her father, confused. He had a cold and callous look on his face as he ground his teeth and muttered in a language she had not understood. As Amethyst looked at her father he took notice and opened a wide cheesy grin.
"What's the matter, beautiful girl of mine." He said with a jolly tone.
"Did I do something wrong?" Amethyst asked as she started to sniffle.
Her father put her on the ground and kneeled next to her. "My little angel, you could do nothing wrong." He said while wiping her tears away. "Your grandfather is a selfish and cowardly man." He said, anger leaking from his eyes. "No matter what we do, it will never be enough for him."
"Promise I didn't do anything wrong?" She sniffled again and held up her hand. Her little pinky finger stood straight up.
"I promise my little dove." Her father said, wrapping his pinky around hers. He then took her up in his arms and squeezed her tight until she started to giggle. "There you go! Dad is going to make you peanut butter cookies!" He said joyfully, his free hand tickling her side.
Amethyst laughed as she clung tightly to her dad, resting against his chest.
The memory jolted Amethyst. While Stochastís and Garba spoke, she let herself dive into the memory, replaying it again and again as she let the camel be guided by Garba. She was vaguely aware that Stochastís was talking at Garba who seemed uninterested. But she couldn't keep her mind off the face of the man she called father.
Amethyst was startled out of her memory as Tenya placed a hand on her thigh. She didn't look at Tenya for more than an instant before dropping off of the camel and hugging her tightly. She started to cry softly into Tenya's shoulder while Tenya caressed her hair and lower back as the two embraced.
Tenya whispered sweet words of comfort as they stood there. Garba and Stochastís approached. but didn't offer any support more than a hand and a paw on her shoulder. They asked what was the matter but after no answer they both stepped away and left the encouragement to the person she chose to seek her safety in.
Amethyst recounted her memory as she and Tenya walked. She talked in depth about how she had never known him and how she had seen his face before in her delusions with the Serpent guard. Though the face of her father, and his loving interaction was at the forefront of her mind. Amethyst started to look back at the interactions she could recall with her grandfather. The bite in his voice as he told her to fetch water for tea. How he had told her that it was winter fairies that made the snow and snowmelt cold.
She could hear the impatience and frustration he spoke to her in. All the good and fun memories she had thought she knew so well rotted and festered in her head. She let out her frustration and disappointment along with the desire to find her father before the realization hit. He had left.
§
The docks were packed with ships both in the harbor and out on the sea. Bontu had gathered everyone in Amethyst's group together and talked over safety procedures and how there were still pirates out there. Told them what to look out for and how to be safe during storms.
The sun had grown old out on the far eastern horizon as it faded behind the blanket of ocean. The birds still picked for scraps along the beaches and a whole hoard of crabs made the sand look like it was creeping up into the thick foliage.
The people around were much more courteous on the dock than they had been on the road. Amethyst had hoped to see her nameless friend, but was not able to spot him as she descended below the deck of one of Bontu's passenger ships. Amethyst wasn't interested in the ship's design or the intricacies that went into building it. She was stuck on her memories.
Tenya grabbed Amethyst's hand. "We are bunk mates." Tenya said with a small smile.
Amethyst's memories were forgotten and she looked at Tenya in the flickering lamp light before Tenya pulled Amethyst along. "I didn't grab my stuff." Amethyst said worriedly.
"I could tell you were lost in your mind again." She said with a smile looking back at Amethyst. "So I told them to bring your necessities with mine to our room." Tenya looked ahead before stopping and opening a narrow door.
Inside there were two hammocks and a table which had been molted in some fashion to the floor. with a little chair tied with rope around the legs to stop it from moving. There were no windows or portholes, only a hook for the lamp and a small latch in the floor, their stuff could be stored. The cabin was tight. They would be able to bump each other while in their separate Hammocks
"Well it's not much but it's private." Tenya said as she opened the latch and started storing some of her stuff in the floor.
Amethyst agreed wordlessly with a nod. But she was focused on Tenya's crouching figure. She looked away from Tenya as she stood back up. "It's really cramped huh?"
"Mhm." Tenya agreed.
Each got into their hammocks, the night already matured almost past the midpoint. There were muffled voices coming from the other cabins as well as the sounds of workers thumping around while moving cargo and personnel goods above and through the halls. There was a resonating creaking that was all present, but wasn't very distracting.
The waves slapped the sides of the ship as it teetered about this way and that. Amethyst felt the rocking of the ship, though it was dampened somewhat by the hammock. Sometimes the hammocks lined up with the waves and swung a little more aggressively. Amethyst heard Tenya say goodnight and recalled mumbling back.
Cradled by the ship gently rocking her and the rhythmic sounds of the waves. All of the bustle around the ship dissipated. Amethyst felt Tenya's hand grab hers. Tenya squeezed her hand three times, and Amethyst returned the gesture, before rolling over, getting comfortable while her mind wondered about what it would be like crossing the sea this time. She conjured up impossible dreams as she was lost somewhere between sleep and the waking world. The last thoughts she had before she succumbed to unconscious slumber were about the adventure to come in Melydaesos.
(The end of part 1)