His piercing gaze scrutinized the bundle. Its slight features and slender build implied femininity, though given the effort that Kasrjin had put into avoiding any and all of the western continent's denizens, he had no way to know for sure. The features of her face had amalgamated into a steely expression. She carried no weapons, but that did not mean she was incapable of inflicting harm. Kasrjin had not yet borne witness to whether or not the peoples of this land were capable of utilizing the Correspondence, but that was not information he was particularly interested in verifying, given the tense situation.
The Xaela held his sword still, the point facing outward and a hand poised on the flat of it. The trees would make swings impossible, and so he altered his grip so as to be ready to thrust the weapon at an instant's provocation. The stranger, in turn, leaned against a tree. Kasrjin tilted his head slightly, noting the way she leaned against one leg. An injury? That would explain the yelp and the tumble, but what that didn't explain was what she was doing in a presumably wild part of the wood in the first place.
A faint spot of self-awareness was cognizant of how he must appear to the female, regardless of whether or not she had intended to harm him. He did not particularly wish to be intimidating to her--it would make discourse difficult--though the circumstances demanded that it be an advantage.
It would seem that the female wished to interrupt Kasrjin's steady and silent observation of her as her expression morphed into one of haughtiness as she leaned against the tree and spoke.
"Well? Are you going to kill me or not?"
Immediately following the question was a sense of profound bafflement that washed over him like sand muffling an errant seashell and expressed itself in a stern frown. The Xaela understood what the individual words meant, but not when they were arranged in that particular order. What was the purpose of the query? He was already poised to kill her if needed to, yes, but Kasrjin felt that his intentions--at the very least, the intention to not kill her without provocation--was evident by way of the fact that he had not yet done so. If she perceived him as an opponent, then what could she have gained by doubting whether or not he had intended to kill her? Clearly, if he was to be considered an enemy with which to engage in combat or from which she needed to flee, then his intentions could be reasonably inferred from that assumption and thus the time asking such a superfluous inquiry could have been better used instead for either of those courses of action. It was akin to seeing the sun pause in the sky and asking if it was going to rise from the horizon.
The Au Ra shook his head, both as a silent answer to the female's question and to clear his own mind. Tsanai had made persistent warning of this continent's oddities, but to be expected to interpret such perplexing behaviour at this early outset was an unexpectedly challenging development.
Kasrjin lowered the point of his sword and relaxed his grip on his weapon. After all, his intention was to wound or maim, but not to kill. He needed an egress from this forest, but should she attempt hostile action, the Xaela felt ready to disable her.
"Where is the road?" he rumbled, attempting to match the volume of the female's inquiry. His voice was a perplexing contradiction of smooth and gravelly, like crumbled rocks being slid down a chute.
The Xaela held his sword still, the point facing outward and a hand poised on the flat of it. The trees would make swings impossible, and so he altered his grip so as to be ready to thrust the weapon at an instant's provocation. The stranger, in turn, leaned against a tree. Kasrjin tilted his head slightly, noting the way she leaned against one leg. An injury? That would explain the yelp and the tumble, but what that didn't explain was what she was doing in a presumably wild part of the wood in the first place.
A faint spot of self-awareness was cognizant of how he must appear to the female, regardless of whether or not she had intended to harm him. He did not particularly wish to be intimidating to her--it would make discourse difficult--though the circumstances demanded that it be an advantage.
It would seem that the female wished to interrupt Kasrjin's steady and silent observation of her as her expression morphed into one of haughtiness as she leaned against the tree and spoke.
"Well? Are you going to kill me or not?"
Immediately following the question was a sense of profound bafflement that washed over him like sand muffling an errant seashell and expressed itself in a stern frown. The Xaela understood what the individual words meant, but not when they were arranged in that particular order. What was the purpose of the query? He was already poised to kill her if needed to, yes, but Kasrjin felt that his intentions--at the very least, the intention to not kill her without provocation--was evident by way of the fact that he had not yet done so. If she perceived him as an opponent, then what could she have gained by doubting whether or not he had intended to kill her? Clearly, if he was to be considered an enemy with which to engage in combat or from which she needed to flee, then his intentions could be reasonably inferred from that assumption and thus the time asking such a superfluous inquiry could have been better used instead for either of those courses of action. It was akin to seeing the sun pause in the sky and asking if it was going to rise from the horizon.
The Au Ra shook his head, both as a silent answer to the female's question and to clear his own mind. Tsanai had made persistent warning of this continent's oddities, but to be expected to interpret such perplexing behaviour at this early outset was an unexpectedly challenging development.
Kasrjin lowered the point of his sword and relaxed his grip on his weapon. After all, his intention was to wound or maim, but not to kill. He needed an egress from this forest, but should she attempt hostile action, the Xaela felt ready to disable her.
"Where is the road?" he rumbled, attempting to match the volume of the female's inquiry. His voice was a perplexing contradiction of smooth and gravelly, like crumbled rocks being slid down a chute.
