A World Beyond our Shores (Angelo&Faerie)
 

A world in which elves exist and magic works offers greater opportunities to digress and explore
- Terry Brooks

Tali stood at the helm of the ship, staring off at the jungled landmass that was fast approaching. Quiop. It was a mystery as surely as the bottom of the ocean. Few people have ever seen the natives, and even further have gone inland. As it was, Tali and the crew had long abandoned their thick bear-skin coats, suitable for the harsh temperatures of Kynsh for light clothing more apt to the jungle climate.

Her honey-blonde hair flowed as the boat sliced through the salty waters, leaving a fine mist behind that covered her pale skin. Involuntarily, she closed her sky-blue eyes, protecting them from the mist every time it flowed up from the sea, and laughed merrily, the sound full of radiant joy. They were on their way to the jungle continent for trade purposes, their ship loaded up with precious gems and Kynsh's famous bear brandy. Surely their load would receive great profits before they were done.

Jai'kar stood on the dock as another boat, from Kynsh if he guessed correctly, docked. He was guarding the merchant's cargo as it was unloaded from the boat behind him, his black eyes looking at everyone as if they were planning to steal the goods: ivory, ebony, gold, diamonds, and olive oil, along with some others. The spear in his hand made the other sailors resting on the docks wary, though the black tattoos up and down his arms probably didn't help. They were a medley of shapes, designed to protect him from malicious spirits.

His copper skin glistened with water, though. The mist coming off the ocean in the breezes had been quite annoying. He swiped his right hand through his black hair, trying to get rid of the itch the water left as it trickled down to his scalp and off of his head. Hopefully, they would finish up the trade before too long so they could be on their way back to Ipey.

Absently, Itzli ground the heartsbane herb with the willowbark in her pestle and mortar. She was at the port city today on request. A man had taken sick, and nothing the local shaman did helped. Heartsbane, usually lethal, could be altered with a touch of nature magic to kill diseases instead of harming the victim, though it was very precise work. Willowbark also helped the patient sleep, as well as limit the negative effects of heartsbane.

The activity at the docks kept distracting her though. Sighing, she placed the pestle and mortar down, the iridescent scarlet and gold dragons sparkling on her arms. They almost seemed alive, as did every spirit tattoo. It was a sign of who your spirit animal was. Very few had dragons, while the most common was a bird of prey, or a lion. It had made quite a few people angry that her spirit animal was the dragon, but she could do nothing about it. As far as she knew, she was the only one in several decades. She was also paler than most, though she attributed it to her size, an adorable three-foot-six and thirty-eight pounds. Her hair and eyes were also a lot lighter. She never could get much information about her parents, who had died shortly after her apprenticeship, though she had the vague feeling that her mother had her eyes and hair as well.

Shaking the thoughts from her head, her bright blue-green eyes scanned the pestle and mortar, checking the consistency of the paste. Sighing, she picked it up and began grinding again, making sure to get every ounce ground together perfectly. Her fiery red hair was tied behind her head with a strip of cloth at the top of her neck that let the hair fan out below without bothering her work. It was only shoulder-height though, so it didn't go out to far. The man lying on the bed groaned, though she checked her mixture once more before going to mix a little bit into his tea. Gently, she poured the cupful down his throat, humming softly as she did so. Hopefully, he would be fine, but he had been sick a long time before she got there. That and the new arrivals at the docks filled her mind as she sat and waited.

Lala quickened her pace to keep up with her elderly grandmother’s spry steps. “Mima,” she was gasping for breath from the long journey carrying all the charms she had created. “How much farther until we get to the market?” the older woman chuckled at her granddaughter. They had been traveling along the coast of the large continent of Quiop for three days making slow, but steady, progress towards one of the ports. It was Lala’s first time traveling to the city to sell the goods she had created and her heart was fluttering with excitement and eagerness.

“We get there when we get there, just relax and enjoy the journey,” Mima paused and looked thoughtful for a moment. “You should remember the trip; you will soon be making it alone.” Lala didn’t like the look in her grandmother’s eyes at all and stopped her walking, readjusting the boxes in her arms and then rushing to keep up with the older woman’s pace again.

“Don’t say that, Mima, you’re in better shape than I am. I’m sure you’ll be able to continue traveling!” Lala’s sea colored eyes looked distressed at the thought of going to the tree infested country alone and her blond, almost white hair, stuck to her cheeks and neck from the heat. It wasn’t a pleasant experience to leave Atlendies and she prayed that the trip wouldn’t last much longer. However, a small part of the young woman was glad for the adventure. Seeing new places, meeting exciting new people, and selling some of the charms she had worked so hard on all made her feel giddy. “Oh! Is that is?” She motioned with her brown face towards a ship that was coming in at the horizon.

“Right, it should be another two hours or so on foot,” her grandmother said just as Lala jumped into the ocean, her scarf tied securely around the boxes she held, and began to splash about.

“Walking takes too long, let’s swim!”
Da’ven had found himself on another journey as a body guard for merchants with precious cargo from the mountains. His green eyes looked foggy as he grasped the railing on the boat to steady himself. Boats made him seasick and it took all his strength to keep himself from puking out his last meal. The man was short, even for someone from Venzeyx, and his neck just made it over the side of the ship as he coughed and gagged with the rocking of the large ship.

“Aye, still haven’t gotten used to the life of a sailor? Too bad, we’d love you to stay on, little friend,” Da’ven chose to ignore the comment from the sailor about staying aboard the ship as he finally threw up into the dark ocean. The sailor let out a hearty laugh and patted the shorter man hard on the back. “For such a strong looking man, you’re not very tough against the ocean.”

Da’ven whipped his head around. His pale skin had a greenish tint to it from the motion sickness and his scrubby red beard had bits of his lunch still stuck in it. He glared with his dull green eyes and the sailor decided it was best to leave the body guard alone to puke in peace. Rumors were told about Da’ven when he was angry, such as he had chopped a man in half for taking his favorite jerky or he had rampaged a whole village when they didn’t have enough to pay him for his services, and the seaman didn’t want to stay and find out if they were true.

“Land, ho!” the lookout screamed from the top of the ship and Da’ven gagged over the railing again before looking forward. Though they were still miles away, the tall trees that defined Quiop could clearly be seen and the merchants he was escorting were beginning to gather their supplies to disembark. With a splash of water from his canteen he washed his face and gargled it in his throat to get rid of the smell of his vomit. His journey was about to begin.

((Whew, sorry it took so stinkin' long. Things have been crazy here since I got home. Hopefully my updates with be more regular now that everything has calmed down!))

Having docked a few minutes ago, Tali watched as her father ordered men to load several carts with the goods they had brought to sell. Like most coastal cities in Quiop, the market was at the great plaza in the middle of the city. From where she stood she could see the brightly colored stalls and awnings, and hear the vague buzz of a great crowd. People from all over the world came to cities like this to trade, though this was all any outsider ever saw of the jungle continent. They truly were an elusive and mysterious people.

"I see an Ipen and a Venzeyxian ship. Seems like we chose a good time to be here, eh Tali?" her father said, smiling in a way that lit up his sky blue eyes. "I need you to go and pick up some herbs from the local Wisdom for sea-sickness. I swear, every year we get more and more landlubbers. Pretty soon there won't be merchants at all!" Giggling at his usual complaints, Tali took the list and set off for the Wisdom's house. Several of the other boats would probably be sending their own people to pick up some of the same herbs.

As she wandered the streets, enjoying the sights of the city and the people, though they eyed her suspiciously, Tali found herself at peace. Her peace didn't keep her from realizing that she was lost, however. Peering back the way she came, Tali moaned at how the buildings all appeared identical. "Now how am I going to find it?" she asked out loud, gaining a few stares before she stomped off in dismay.

Muttering angrily as he stomped down the street, Jai'kar asked himself for the millionth time how he managed to get stuck with herb duty. It wasn't his fault Raul was being a freaking idiot and cut himself off of his own spear. He should be the one trying to find his way through the blasted streets of the sprawling port city. From what he heard, most of the Quiopian cities weren't nearly so large, more like villages than anything. From his own experience, he figured it was the same everywhere, or at least in Ipey.

Noticing a girl, from Kynsh unless he missed his guess, he followed, figuring she could lead him to the Wise One. True to his nature, if people got in his way, he shoved them aside, ignoring the biting remarks and curses that followed him. Was getting back to Ipey really to much to ask for? He just wanted out of this awful jungle!

((No problem. :) And sorry it's short. I don't seem to have very many ideas for the characters right now. :(

And I was thinking we could meet up at Itzli's apartment. ;) Unless you'd rather have your characters meet up, and then all five of our characters meet up later. :P))