Brishen's Story

Brishen frowned at the guitar, regretting the cracking of his mandolin more and more each day.

"Charmer, yes," His smile dropped, but not too far, before it was turned on the lady.

"And you? A name, for the lady?"

He quirked at the question, but eased nontheless.
Brishen wasn't old, perhaps in his mid twenties, though seeming a bit more rugged. A bit more aged.

"A beautiful thing, such inspiration," He gestured, and looked out the window. Seeing the machinery disappointed him.
"Like a flower," Then to her, "A pretty face!"

Grabbing up the guitar, Brishen played four or five notes, then set it aside again. He then watched Shakespeare.

Not old enough,

Brishen murmured through a smile, watching the bird speculate the instrument. Carefully, the gypsy man reached for his pack. The clasp gave him some trouble, but eventually he was able to withdraw a small pad and a graphite stick. Brishen then doodled in his lap.

Please Tea,

He said to the waitress who had appeared, looking back to Tawny with that strange smile.

Halfway through drawing, Brishen felt the sharp peck. The worst of grimaces crumpled his face, wrinkles morphing into a laugh in moments.

He reached to the side and stroked the guitar, making a pleasant hum, breaking off a crumb of graphite and putting it on the table. Brishen then resumed drawing, doing his best to keep the owl at bay.

You live here?

Indeed!

Home was where the heart lies, that was sure. To Brishen, home was but a good pair of shoes. He missed his mandolin, having had brought his guitar on this journey, but didn't regret not grabbing it anymore. The owl would have broken the other strings, these it could actually play.

I am with a band of Gypsies,

He scribbled some more at the owl figure,

Lovely bunch. Travel, vagabond do I. Have you a night place?

Oh dear. This owl didn't use it for his feathers. He ruffled his curly hair, and got back to work.

He smiled on Tawny, and put the finishing touches on his drawing.

A while. Have you a bed?

Ehm, as I please!

Though the gypsy sounded cheerful, it troubled him to know that this girl was sleeping alone. Though, the owl could be quite ferocious.

Perhaps...

He didn't want to impose.

I could give?

He ripped out the drawing of Shakespeare and passed it across the table.

It has been done,

Brishen beamed at the bird, taking the gesture as anything but an insult.

Sure, the bird's intent was clear, but to be acknowledged by such a beast was treat. Still, to please Tawny, Brishen reached forth and scribbled his name.

Will you come to camp?

He asked,

Many beds, many songs! Many treats,

He thought of one of his fellow gypsy's cooking.

Brishen simply nodded, and scribbled a small map on the pad.

Tearing it from his journal, he promptly passed it over. Brishen downed his tea in a gulp, winced at the pain, and looked towards the window himself.

I must go me too,

He placed some gold standard down, rising from his seat.

It was lovely to meet you, Tawny, and Shakespeare,

Brishen bowed.

Brishen had to get back to camp, paid his dues, and left.

Brishen slurped down the last of his coffee and folded up the newspaper. It was time to leave the big city and head back to camp, he supposed.

It was a long way up the mountain, and the path was rather dusty, and it was the perfect temperature and temperament of wind for a nap. The black cat stretched, ambling towards a rock half shaded by one of the many grand trees about. He flopped himself comfortable. Yes, a perfect time for a nap.

Up the path came a whistle; soon followed by a short man. He carried on his back a pack and a guitar. The tune wasn't somber, but it wasn't anything happy either. Perhaps he, too, had noted how dusty the path had grown. A small cloud puffed out with each step. He came to stop near the rock, the shadow of his head eclipsing just beyond the snoozing cat.

The cat, if he did take any notice to the looming shadow and man, didn't budge from his slumber.

After a few moments breath, right when the presence of man had begun to be familiar to the great forest, he opened his mouth and remarked upon the weather. When had it last rained, too thought the trees?

“It's been a while,” Purred the cat, rolling onto his back into another glorious stretch. There was a great rumble in the distant mountains, as if to accentuate the words of the cat.

There was a scuffle as the man balked, scrambling behind the nearest tree for cover. Had the cat just said something, as in used words, as in talked ?

“Too long for the trees to be happy,” Continued the cat; the trees bristled agreement. The man's heart raced. It had taken him this long to notice everything around him was not only alive, but truly living. A breeze rushed over the area, steady, haunting. Something in the air caught Brishen's eye, and he knew at this point he might be losing his mind; a man was falling from the sky. The figure was too distant to make out other than that yes, it was human.

On that note, Brishen fainted. Sireth the cat blinked thrice, stretched, and decided to keep watch over the human until it came to.

Aetheria awoke and stretched with a laziness well practiced. The sun washed over her like a comforting blanket of warmth, which caused her to stir with a sleepy yawn. Up in a tree, Aetheria had slept on the thickest branch and had not regretted her decision. While the birds chirped to greet the sun, she stretched her muscle and checked her weapons, along with potions, gadgets and anything else she had brought with her on her journey. She covered her mouth with a slender hand and yawned once more, then used her momentum to spin off the branch, using her hands to swing in motion. Birds fluttered from the disturbance by the young elf and twittered with nervous anticipation. Always nimble, the blonde elf landed with a steady footing and watched a little blue bird flutter near her.

She reassured the bird and allowed it to rest on her index finger. It puffed up its chest and ruffled its feathers in agitation, but forgave the exuberant elf. Aetheria giggled and watched him fly off to tend to his nest. She then realized she had rested near the birds family, which would make anyone agitated. The bird chirped back toward her in a friendlier tone, but she waved her goodbye's and headed off on her own.

Trees crested the edge of the path, which comforted the wood elf. All her life, she had grown up amongst the trees, wildlife and rarely experienced the political side of her mother. Aetheria watched the wildlife scurry across the worn path and munched on a handful of berries from a pouch. Her stomach grumbled for something more substantial, but hunger would have to wait. Perhaps a town was just up ahead and she could rest at an Inn, or grab something to eat at a tavern.

In the pathway, Aetheria squinted against the blinding light of the sun and thought she saw a cat. She loved cats! Aetheria shoved the remaining berry into her mouth and picked up pace to investigate the odd creature. It appeared to be by a sleeping being, so she approached with caution. She didn't want to startle the cat and lose her chance to converse with them.

Aetheria tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her pointed right ear and gazed at the cat. She ignored the growl of her stomach and eyed the still form of the man.

"You poor thing! Is this your owner? What happened?" She said in a soft tone and went to investigate the still being for any wounds. "Are you hungry?" Aetheria asked the cat, even though she understood how stubborn cats could be. While she hadn't spoken to a cat yet in all her life, perhaps it could be persuaded with a bit of food. She reached into her other pack and produced beef jerky and laid it on the ground.

The offering was small, but sometimes it was the gesture that gained a creatures trust.

There was some chirping down the path. The black cat perked up. Chirps meant food. Silently the cat waited for the birds to come flitting over the crest, and flit they did, however followed by someone. Sireth blinked and studied her approach.

"He fainted," The cat stated frankly, arching upwards from his place of rest in a stretch. He purred softly and approached the bit of beef jerky. It smelled delicious, what was it cured with? Sireth gnawed it up in half an instant, licked his lips, and sat back on his haunches.

"Thank you, I am hungry, and no the human isn't mine. Thank goodness," Sireth gave his face another big lick, "And who are you?"

Any other rogue would have looted the fainted man, but she felt an obligation to help the cat's human friend. Aetheria smiled toward the cat and beckoned toward him to pet him. She knew that cats enjoyed being petted, but this one might be feral. Birds warned her of the cat, but she waved their presence away. Aetheria was sure the cat could be trusted.

She sat down on a nearby stump covered in moss and began to get her rolled up bandages out and any healing salve that might help. First though, she'd need to wake the person up. Without a second thought, she dug through her sack and found the strong smelling solution. Aetheria waved the solution under the human's nose and waited for the appropriate response. Curious, she studied the fainted human's clothes, but didn't see any important emblem on their garments. She crossed her legs and popped the cork back into the foul smelling vial.

"Would you like more food? I have enough for a few days worth, but I will need to replenish soon." She gazed at Sireth and the fainted being with a smile. "Does he always faint, or did something scary come across his path?" Aetheria waited for the being to stir into full alertness and motioned for the cat to sit on her lap.

Most cats couldn't resist a little pampering.

"I am Aetheria Moonblade. I'm traveling to the next city for supplies." She explained, the cheerfulness in her voice never wavered.

Sireth marched his way forward to enjoy some good old fashioned pets. He hadn't had some of those in a while, and admittedly kind of missed it. Not that he'd ever say that out loud. When the petting was done Sireth settled in to watch the woman attempt to wake the human.

"The next city is up this path, Skyfall Citadel," Sireth squinted skyward as Brishen sputtered to life. The man looked wild eyed at the woman, sneezed a few times, and pulled himself into a sitting position. He stuck a finger in his ear and gave it a good shake. The cat was still talking, wasn't it.

"I'd love some more food," Sireth purred, taking care to step right over Brishen on his way to Aetheria. The man visibly recoiled, moving to take higher ground on the rock Sireth previously occupied before bothering to speak.

"The cat, he talks," Brishen said frankly, almost offended. He didn't always faint, but, "And a man, did you not see him? He fell from the sky, right there-" He pointed to the sky.

At that exact moment thunder clapped across the skies, which opened up to rain. Sireth yelped and burrowed into Aetheria's lap, Brishen stood still with his finger still skyward, on the verge of entering shock. This was just too much for one day, for one wanderer.

"You're awake!" Aetheria exclaimed, content with the man's quick recovery. She helped him sit up and gave him a waterskin with fresh spring water. It should revitalize him, along with a brick of elven bread. It was substantial enough to keep him full for another half day's travel. (Elves did pride themselves in their cooking.) She patted Sireth and reacted in a calm manner to the cat having a full conversation with them. When he mentioned Skyfall Citdael, her elvish ears perked up and twitched. She hadn't been to that city yet! With excitement, she picked up Sirel and nuzzled his nose with her own. It was a strange way of giving thanks for the information, but she did love the company of this particular feline.

"Thanks, little guy! You still haven't told me your name, though!" She bopped the nose of Sireth playfully with her index finger and put him on the ground with a gentleness. Cats didn't like being treated like a plaything, so she knew better than to provoke Sireth's otherwise good nature.

She brushed the cat fur off her clothing and went to aid Brishen. "Are you ok, Sir? What's your name? I'm Aetheria and this is my friend!" Aetheria exclaimed and gestured toward her new cat companion. Sireth had been the most helpful and entertaining. He managed to calm her nerves, while they waited for the man to awaken from his unconscious state.

When Brishen began to express his fear over the cat, Atheria explained the cats nature the best way she could to ease the tension. "He's quite friendly! A little greedy with the food, but most house cats are that way, you know. He has the softest fur! Would you like to pet him? He's a friendly cat. You don't have to worry about him!" Aetheria was a bit naive and accustomed to talking to animals.

She spoke about Sireth, as though he were another human being that joined their company.

Nose nuzzles! It had been too long. While he wasn't too particularly fond of anything in his face, nose nuzzles were a solid exception. Sireth let slip a little snort at the nose boop, and landed in a stretch when he was put down. Yes, this was a good humanoid.

"Sireth," The black cat stated his name with a long purr, marching back to Aetheria to brush against her multiple times.

Brishen, on the other hand, had his jaw nearly to the ground. He still had trouble swallowing the reality of a talking cat; even despite his background living on the edge of the Cursed Wood, on a planet far away.

"I'm...", Brishen began- when suddenly rain began to fall in buckets, with little warning beyond the thunderclap from before. He scrambled for cover under the nearest tree, and Sireth was not soon behind. The cat deftly scaled to a low branch, glaring skyward. The rain made him uncomfortable, but more than usual. It was almost as if something was tugging at the very edge of his presence.

She didn't even get to make a friendly introduction with the man! The rain came down harder on the odd trio and she sprinted for cover with them. Aetheria traveled for the first time on her own, the right of passage a unique one for her family. If she could convince her parents to not take up the family tradition of woodcutting, then she could put her roots somewhere else. She giggled at the raindrops that tickled her nose.

Maybe it was in her genetics, but she felt more alive in nature. Aetheria stepped from hiding and began to dance in the rain, her tongue reached out to taste a few raindrops that fell from the blackened sky. To any other person, she'd look half-crazy, but it was her elven nature getting the better of her. Rain didn't bother her, but welcomed her. She could feel the electricity in the air, as silver streaks sparked across the sky. She didn't have to be educated in why it would bother Brishen, or even Sireth. They weren't like her kind. Her mother explained this fact to her when she was younger. Nature had a way with elves, but it was unnatural and even ethereal.

Aetheria giggled and smoothed down her rain soaked hair, her skin glistened with a newness, her spirit lifted thrice from the experience. She missed home, but this was no time to be homesick! The young half-elf motioned toward her companions.

"Come on, scaredy cats! Last one to reach a tavern, buys the food and drink!" Aetheria exclaimed and giggled into a sprint. If the cat wanted more pets, he'd have to follower her. Likewise, if Brishen wanted company, or explanations, he'd have to follow suit of the strange half-elf.

Skyfall Citadel

The main trading city of Skyfall, bustling with humans, elves, dwarves, dragonkin, and any race which is found on Gaia. It is home to the four Great Temples of Gaia, Eras, Atargatis, and Sagittae; the stars and earth personified as deities by the citizens of Skyfall.

Sireth hated the rain, but didn't fancy standing under the fading cover of a slow soaked tree until it stopped- which didn't seem like it would be anytime soon. He leapt into the rain with a howl. The black cat scampered after Aetheria and did his best to dodge the raindrops.

Brishen, on the other hand, set his pack on the ground and began rummaging through it. He unearthed a threadbare oilcloth and draped it around his head and shoulders. Brishen hurried his way after, almost wishing for the path to be dusty once more.

To Skyfall Citadel!