
((Those who want to understand K'ile's situation should read at least the most recent post in this other RP thread over here))
K'ile Tia had gone missing while scouting the narrow pass between Southern Thanalan and Northern Thanalan, ahead of the tribe's movement through that area. he should not have been away from the tribe alone; everyone knows not to go off on their own. K'yohko Nunh had made such a mistake days prior and the entire tribe had suffered as a result. K'ile had been one of his chief detractors for his trespass. And yet K'ile had made the same mistake not days later. All that was left of him in the pass was his discarded spear, burnt and blackened, and spots of his blood dashed on patches of quartz in the middle of the sand.
K'takka crouched over the quartz in the middle of the pass, noting the way it shone like glass in the sun. There were orange crystals ringing it, shattered into small fragments, and her silver eyes narrowed in suspicion at them. As she brushed a hand over them, the red stones on her wrist shone. "Hm."
"Elder?" The tribe was around her. The huntresses watched her carefully, seeming less worried about K'ile and more worried about what the Elders would decide to do.
K'takka looked to the other Elders, K'deiki and K'jhahni, noting their expressions. K'takka glanced at the Nunh, then back down at the quartz. Her eyes closed, and she breathed deeply, smelling the blood and the earth, the old stink of dead bodies inexplicably lingering in the air. Then she opened her eyes and pointed her shivering claw at two of the huntresses. "You and you. Track him. Retrieve him if it is safe. Leave him and find us if he is not. We will not wait for you." The women nodded. The two women were dark-haired with tinges of red in their eyebrows. Children of firedancers two generations removed. It seemed appropriate.
The tribe left the pass and moved north-east as though nothing had occured. K'takka did not wish to hear another word about K'ile Tia, neither about his disappearance nor his return. She did not speak to K'yohko about this. She did not ask after any of K'ile's family or friends. K'takka did not entertain any discussion about the feast or the challenge. It did not matter to her. The tribe was moving, and she kept her eyes forward.
*
"We will not stay here." K'takka's tone once again brooked no argument. It never did.
"But, Elder," the huntresses' thin arm extended towards the corpse of the goobbue and the many plants that grew around it: fruits, herbs, edible and medicinal roots. "This is the location which K'luha, K'ile and the others said would be best."
"They did not have my sight." K'takka's silver eyes opened wider, and she stared into the fetid, clouded eyes of the goobbue, like dirty marbles set in the dome of its head. Its mouth hung ajar with rigid teeth preserved. The same plants that grew around it grew over its flesh as well, wrapping it like a skull. "Young people might see life springing from death and mistake it for beauty, but I see nothing but ill omens here."
K'ile Tia had been found in the settlement of Drybone, surrounded by Ul'dahn healers. Some might have called that a good thing as well, but K'takka was beginning to sense ill omens in the Tia's unexplained movements. The man had been skirting the challenge of Nunhship for almost six long years, and now it seemed like he was walking the precipice of death. His red ears laying flat against his head, sitting on the wagon as one sick -- he was injured -- he lifted his darkened eyes and spoke to the Elder. "K'luha and I slept a night below the goobbue."
"As I said. Ill omens." K'takka turned to watch the other elders as she spoke. "West some malms, nearer the water. Open sky beneath Azeyma. We will camp there." She waited for the input. The tribe waited with her.
K'ile Tia frowned and closed his eyes, resting a hand on top of his head. The huntresses had found him concussed and bruised, with a swath of black and blue across his neck where he had been strangled near to death. Given the burned spear and quartz, K'takka had expected him to have been burned, but he was not. She found it suspicious. He had been sustained by the healing magic of outsiders, but was weak and could not be permitted to sleep for fear that he would not awaken. He'd claimed that he had been attacked by bandits from Gridania. K'takka found it suspicious.
Her thin tail swung behind her, fur patchy, swaths of ashen black flesh making it pull unnaturally and shiver. She glared at the Tia with her silver eyes. He did not notice.
*
The tribe was almost as quick to set up camp here as they were in the desert. The ground was harder here than in the desert, and it was a challenge for some to drive their tentpoles into the ground. They used spear and stone to help in digging. The tents, as always, followed the same layout, with the Elder's tent in the center and the healers' tent nearby, food and storage ringing a great central bonfire and public gathering area. Personal tents circled the outer edge of the camp. The organization was interrupted in some places by rocks too large to be moved, but this was a minor inconvenience.
They did not dig a well. For the first time in the tribe's history, they were within walking distance of fresh water. Standing just outside the Elders' tent, K'takka could see the stone daises that stood as monuments about the pond. She could smell the fertile water and the pungent herbs that grew around it. Plants were everywhere. Small animals, birds, and insects were plentiful. No one would starve here. No one would thirst.
"K'iara!" K'takka snapped suddenly, turning her gaze to their oldest and most reliable huntress. Behind her, inside the tent, the sounds of clattering bone and pot could be heard, the other Elders working not only to settle into their new home but also to prepare the fetishes and blessings that the tribe relied upon. K'takka gestured to the red-haired huntress, beckoning her nearer. "Gather the huntresses. We Elders will proclaim and bless the first hunt in mere minutes. Be ready." She then turned to go inside of the tent, but paused, and frowned back at K'iara. "And send someone to the K'Zhumi's tent to check on that damned Tia. Ask him about his foolish challenge. And ask K'luha about it too! Give her a chance to withdraw her support! She might just save his life."
K'ile Tia had gone missing while scouting the narrow pass between Southern Thanalan and Northern Thanalan, ahead of the tribe's movement through that area. he should not have been away from the tribe alone; everyone knows not to go off on their own. K'yohko Nunh had made such a mistake days prior and the entire tribe had suffered as a result. K'ile had been one of his chief detractors for his trespass. And yet K'ile had made the same mistake not days later. All that was left of him in the pass was his discarded spear, burnt and blackened, and spots of his blood dashed on patches of quartz in the middle of the sand.
K'takka crouched over the quartz in the middle of the pass, noting the way it shone like glass in the sun. There were orange crystals ringing it, shattered into small fragments, and her silver eyes narrowed in suspicion at them. As she brushed a hand over them, the red stones on her wrist shone. "Hm."
"Elder?" The tribe was around her. The huntresses watched her carefully, seeming less worried about K'ile and more worried about what the Elders would decide to do.
K'takka looked to the other Elders, K'deiki and K'jhahni, noting their expressions. K'takka glanced at the Nunh, then back down at the quartz. Her eyes closed, and she breathed deeply, smelling the blood and the earth, the old stink of dead bodies inexplicably lingering in the air. Then she opened her eyes and pointed her shivering claw at two of the huntresses. "You and you. Track him. Retrieve him if it is safe. Leave him and find us if he is not. We will not wait for you." The women nodded. The two women were dark-haired with tinges of red in their eyebrows. Children of firedancers two generations removed. It seemed appropriate.
The tribe left the pass and moved north-east as though nothing had occured. K'takka did not wish to hear another word about K'ile Tia, neither about his disappearance nor his return. She did not speak to K'yohko about this. She did not ask after any of K'ile's family or friends. K'takka did not entertain any discussion about the feast or the challenge. It did not matter to her. The tribe was moving, and she kept her eyes forward.
*
"We will not stay here." K'takka's tone once again brooked no argument. It never did.
"But, Elder," the huntresses' thin arm extended towards the corpse of the goobbue and the many plants that grew around it: fruits, herbs, edible and medicinal roots. "This is the location which K'luha, K'ile and the others said would be best."
"They did not have my sight." K'takka's silver eyes opened wider, and she stared into the fetid, clouded eyes of the goobbue, like dirty marbles set in the dome of its head. Its mouth hung ajar with rigid teeth preserved. The same plants that grew around it grew over its flesh as well, wrapping it like a skull. "Young people might see life springing from death and mistake it for beauty, but I see nothing but ill omens here."
K'ile Tia had been found in the settlement of Drybone, surrounded by Ul'dahn healers. Some might have called that a good thing as well, but K'takka was beginning to sense ill omens in the Tia's unexplained movements. The man had been skirting the challenge of Nunhship for almost six long years, and now it seemed like he was walking the precipice of death. His red ears laying flat against his head, sitting on the wagon as one sick -- he was injured -- he lifted his darkened eyes and spoke to the Elder. "K'luha and I slept a night below the goobbue."
"As I said. Ill omens." K'takka turned to watch the other elders as she spoke. "West some malms, nearer the water. Open sky beneath Azeyma. We will camp there." She waited for the input. The tribe waited with her.
K'ile Tia frowned and closed his eyes, resting a hand on top of his head. The huntresses had found him concussed and bruised, with a swath of black and blue across his neck where he had been strangled near to death. Given the burned spear and quartz, K'takka had expected him to have been burned, but he was not. She found it suspicious. He had been sustained by the healing magic of outsiders, but was weak and could not be permitted to sleep for fear that he would not awaken. He'd claimed that he had been attacked by bandits from Gridania. K'takka found it suspicious.
Her thin tail swung behind her, fur patchy, swaths of ashen black flesh making it pull unnaturally and shiver. She glared at the Tia with her silver eyes. He did not notice.
*
The tribe was almost as quick to set up camp here as they were in the desert. The ground was harder here than in the desert, and it was a challenge for some to drive their tentpoles into the ground. They used spear and stone to help in digging. The tents, as always, followed the same layout, with the Elder's tent in the center and the healers' tent nearby, food and storage ringing a great central bonfire and public gathering area. Personal tents circled the outer edge of the camp. The organization was interrupted in some places by rocks too large to be moved, but this was a minor inconvenience.
They did not dig a well. For the first time in the tribe's history, they were within walking distance of fresh water. Standing just outside the Elders' tent, K'takka could see the stone daises that stood as monuments about the pond. She could smell the fertile water and the pungent herbs that grew around it. Plants were everywhere. Small animals, birds, and insects were plentiful. No one would starve here. No one would thirst.
"K'iara!" K'takka snapped suddenly, turning her gaze to their oldest and most reliable huntress. Behind her, inside the tent, the sounds of clattering bone and pot could be heard, the other Elders working not only to settle into their new home but also to prepare the fetishes and blessings that the tribe relied upon. K'takka gestured to the red-haired huntress, beckoning her nearer. "Gather the huntresses. We Elders will proclaim and bless the first hunt in mere minutes. Be ready." She then turned to go inside of the tent, but paused, and frowned back at K'iara. "And send someone to the K'Zhumi's tent to check on that damned Tia. Ask him about his foolish challenge. And ask K'luha about it too! Give her a chance to withdraw her support! She might just save his life."
![[Image: Collage_banner.png]](https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/179079766/Collage_banner.png)