14th of Searing, 120
It was their third day of traveling as a trio. Magna, Khan, and Pacheco. Their travels held lots of walking on Magna's part, as well as a few breaks to eat, drink and clean Khan's wound along the way. He was getting better, it seemed, with no sign of infection or fever in the smaller lizard man. Magna had been learning more about Ithmi, as well; a language that was commonly spoken in Atinaw, as she'd discovered. So, in exchange for the privilege to learn, Magna told the lizard stories of her time traveling and even spoke the occasional word of Ithmi in place of common to impress her teacher. Every time she did, she earned a clap and a happy lizard sound of congratulations. Indeed, their travels were going well.
In all that time, however, Khan hadn't spoken about himself at all. The man was a mystery to her; energetic, easygoing, insightful, and sensitive. Though aside from sharing a few laughs and lessons alike, she'd yet to see any depth to him. Even though he'd just lost his arm when they first met, he seemed to be sound of mind. Did he not mind losing his limb for some reason? Of course, the language barrier was a problem for deeper conversation, but she'd yet to see him in any state besides happy or uncomfortable. Through her thoughts, she continued her walk. Pacheco followed along by the pull of his lead and Khan napped while riding the horse. There was an overcast that day; a rare occasion during the searing season. It did mean that she could walk for longer without stopping for water, however. If they were lucky, it might even rain!
She had been on the road for some time now, longer than she normally was. Her first instinct would have been to stop at the nearest town and stock up on rations, but instead, she'd agreed to guide this lizard to the city of Hopsfel; his home, from what she'd gathered from their lessons. He had said they were close just the day before, so she hoped to make it there by the end of the day. Perhaps it was within view? Curious, the half-giant lifted her head to peer across the hills when she spied a group along the road ahead. Her first thought was that the sight was strange. She'd been walking comparatively slow from exhaustion; how had they managed to catch up to a group? But, by watching them move and the landmarks they passed, she realized that the group was heading toward them. At the realization, she straightened her back and waited a moment for Pacheco to pass her and pause, then gently nudged the lizard to consciousness.
Khan woke with a start, sitting fully upright in the saddle before drawing a deep breath through his nostrils. A stretch of his one arm saw him groan before looking to Magna. "Sodia," spoke the lizard with a yawn. Magna paused and processed the word. She knew that one. A general inquiry, asking how she was? A smile was her reply, accompanied by a nod. "Dia," added the woman before her smile waned. She was good, however... With a lift of her arm, she pointed to the approaching group. The chameleon looked to her indication and squinted, then widened his eyes, as if he'd been struck. "What?" She asked in common as his expression changed. "Ah..." Replied the lizard. "Nothing, I handle," he answered in turn. Magna furrowed her brow. What did that mean? Was there something to handle? Did he know these people?
She would soon find out it seemed, as the group was about close enough to make out detail. They seemed to share a color for their clothing, at least in accent: pale yellow. Their armor and weapons were all of a similar fashion too, as though they'd been crafted by the same smith. Magna furrowed her brow as she began to count... A total of five. Were they some sort of guard patrol? A small army headed to war? Why so heavily armed, and organized in such a large force? The dirt road acted as a sort of channel, guiding the two parties to one another. Among them were two beast people; a crocodile and a rat, and the rest seemed to be human. One of them appeared to be female with dark hair, prettier than Magna was. Furthermore, she carried a weapon: a rather large bow that rested over her shoulder.
With something of a frown, she looked to her companions; Pacheco and Khan. Khan was uneasy, his tail curled into a spiral where he sat and the entirety of his focus was on the group. Even Pacheco seemed a little on edge, and nothing usually phased him. When the group was in talking distance, they slowed to a halt as one of the humans began to laugh loudly. For some reason, Magna did the same. It didn't feel right to turn her back to them, she had to face them fully. She didn't feel all that confident, but she looked the part. Even though the only one in the group that was taller than her was the crocodile, it didn't change the fact that none of them looked friendly. Khan waved in response and appeared to hide his frown with a weak smile. The lead human took on a berating tone and spoke in Ithmi to the chameleon. She didn't know what he was saying, but he was loud, and aggressive, almost as though he were flexing or bragging about something or other. She did recognize Khan's name being said though, as well as a few other words that carried as much emphasis as names.
When the man was done, Khan spoke only one sentence in turn, and the whole group bar one reeled and gasped. The only one that seemed unphased was the rat, and she hurled a berating barrage of her own. If anything, the rat seemed ready to fight and took a step closer to the horse with her dagger held up in the air. Magna tightened her grip on Pacheco's lead and pulled him back as the crocodile reached down to pluck the rat by the back of her shirt. The crocodile spoke in a low feminine voice at the rat, something that seemed like it was intended to calm her down, and it worked. With a hung head, Khan dismounted and nearly fell in the process, due to tackling the feat with only one arm. But despite his stumble, he still stood.
The conversation took a different tone when the human next spoke. His voice came with remorse, sorrow even. Khan merely shook his head and offered a few words of his own. One of the words he spoke was repeated by almost the entire group: 'Arkhen'. She knew not what it meant, but it had the suspended rat riled up again. She began to yell and thrash, waving her weapons about threateningly. Magna did not like her, and neither did Pacheco. Dark thoughts of yelling at the rat clouded her mind, and all she could think about for a moment or two was to loose the full, deafening blast of her voice the aggressive rodent. She didn't act on them, of course, but it still felt wrong to think that way. The crocodile soon shushed the rat again, and Magna saw her dark anger ease. The human looked to the rat as though he were confused before he shook his head and turned back to Khan. A respectful bow was offered, and Khan returned the courtesy.
Magna merely looked to Pacheco with a raised brow. What the heck were they talking about? The conversation had taken a full spin from the sounds of the tones and the offered gestures.
It was when the human raised from his bow that he looked to the giantess and smiled before looking back to Khan. He spoke something of an inquiry, along with a word she recognized: 'Dieith', 'Stranger'. He was talking about her. At once, Magna stood a little straighter and filled her lungs with a breath from her nose to appear larger. A frown nestled on her face, something she imagined looked tough and intimidating. Khan looked to her and smiled a little before answering the human's inquiry. The human laughed in response, then pet the smaller lizard on the head. Were they joking about her? The thought deflated her chest, and her aggressive frown softened to a look of confused sadness. Finally, the group passed and offered waves to the one-armed lizard. He lifted his hand to return their farewells.
Khan soon climbed upon Pacheco's back, but Magna remained silent. Her chest and throat burned a little while cruel thoughts danced in her head. With his usual happy tone, Khan asked a chipper 'Barod?', which she knew was a simple inquiry as of whether or not she was ready to go. A deep exhale flared her nostrils, and without a word, she proceeded along the dirt road with Pacheco and Khan in tow.
It was their third day of traveling as a trio. Magna, Khan, and Pacheco. Their travels held lots of walking on Magna's part, as well as a few breaks to eat, drink and clean Khan's wound along the way. He was getting better, it seemed, with no sign of infection or fever in the smaller lizard man. Magna had been learning more about Ithmi, as well; a language that was commonly spoken in Atinaw, as she'd discovered. So, in exchange for the privilege to learn, Magna told the lizard stories of her time traveling and even spoke the occasional word of Ithmi in place of common to impress her teacher. Every time she did, she earned a clap and a happy lizard sound of congratulations. Indeed, their travels were going well.
In all that time, however, Khan hadn't spoken about himself at all. The man was a mystery to her; energetic, easygoing, insightful, and sensitive. Though aside from sharing a few laughs and lessons alike, she'd yet to see any depth to him. Even though he'd just lost his arm when they first met, he seemed to be sound of mind. Did he not mind losing his limb for some reason? Of course, the language barrier was a problem for deeper conversation, but she'd yet to see him in any state besides happy or uncomfortable. Through her thoughts, she continued her walk. Pacheco followed along by the pull of his lead and Khan napped while riding the horse. There was an overcast that day; a rare occasion during the searing season. It did mean that she could walk for longer without stopping for water, however. If they were lucky, it might even rain!
She had been on the road for some time now, longer than she normally was. Her first instinct would have been to stop at the nearest town and stock up on rations, but instead, she'd agreed to guide this lizard to the city of Hopsfel; his home, from what she'd gathered from their lessons. He had said they were close just the day before, so she hoped to make it there by the end of the day. Perhaps it was within view? Curious, the half-giant lifted her head to peer across the hills when she spied a group along the road ahead. Her first thought was that the sight was strange. She'd been walking comparatively slow from exhaustion; how had they managed to catch up to a group? But, by watching them move and the landmarks they passed, she realized that the group was heading toward them. At the realization, she straightened her back and waited a moment for Pacheco to pass her and pause, then gently nudged the lizard to consciousness.
Khan woke with a start, sitting fully upright in the saddle before drawing a deep breath through his nostrils. A stretch of his one arm saw him groan before looking to Magna. "Sodia," spoke the lizard with a yawn. Magna paused and processed the word. She knew that one. A general inquiry, asking how she was? A smile was her reply, accompanied by a nod. "Dia," added the woman before her smile waned. She was good, however... With a lift of her arm, she pointed to the approaching group. The chameleon looked to her indication and squinted, then widened his eyes, as if he'd been struck. "What?" She asked in common as his expression changed. "Ah..." Replied the lizard. "Nothing, I handle," he answered in turn. Magna furrowed her brow. What did that mean? Was there something to handle? Did he know these people?
She would soon find out it seemed, as the group was about close enough to make out detail. They seemed to share a color for their clothing, at least in accent: pale yellow. Their armor and weapons were all of a similar fashion too, as though they'd been crafted by the same smith. Magna furrowed her brow as she began to count... A total of five. Were they some sort of guard patrol? A small army headed to war? Why so heavily armed, and organized in such a large force? The dirt road acted as a sort of channel, guiding the two parties to one another. Among them were two beast people; a crocodile and a rat, and the rest seemed to be human. One of them appeared to be female with dark hair, prettier than Magna was. Furthermore, she carried a weapon: a rather large bow that rested over her shoulder.
With something of a frown, she looked to her companions; Pacheco and Khan. Khan was uneasy, his tail curled into a spiral where he sat and the entirety of his focus was on the group. Even Pacheco seemed a little on edge, and nothing usually phased him. When the group was in talking distance, they slowed to a halt as one of the humans began to laugh loudly. For some reason, Magna did the same. It didn't feel right to turn her back to them, she had to face them fully. She didn't feel all that confident, but she looked the part. Even though the only one in the group that was taller than her was the crocodile, it didn't change the fact that none of them looked friendly. Khan waved in response and appeared to hide his frown with a weak smile. The lead human took on a berating tone and spoke in Ithmi to the chameleon. She didn't know what he was saying, but he was loud, and aggressive, almost as though he were flexing or bragging about something or other. She did recognize Khan's name being said though, as well as a few other words that carried as much emphasis as names.
When the man was done, Khan spoke only one sentence in turn, and the whole group bar one reeled and gasped. The only one that seemed unphased was the rat, and she hurled a berating barrage of her own. If anything, the rat seemed ready to fight and took a step closer to the horse with her dagger held up in the air. Magna tightened her grip on Pacheco's lead and pulled him back as the crocodile reached down to pluck the rat by the back of her shirt. The crocodile spoke in a low feminine voice at the rat, something that seemed like it was intended to calm her down, and it worked. With a hung head, Khan dismounted and nearly fell in the process, due to tackling the feat with only one arm. But despite his stumble, he still stood.
The conversation took a different tone when the human next spoke. His voice came with remorse, sorrow even. Khan merely shook his head and offered a few words of his own. One of the words he spoke was repeated by almost the entire group: 'Arkhen'. She knew not what it meant, but it had the suspended rat riled up again. She began to yell and thrash, waving her weapons about threateningly. Magna did not like her, and neither did Pacheco. Dark thoughts of yelling at the rat clouded her mind, and all she could think about for a moment or two was to loose the full, deafening blast of her voice the aggressive rodent. She didn't act on them, of course, but it still felt wrong to think that way. The crocodile soon shushed the rat again, and Magna saw her dark anger ease. The human looked to the rat as though he were confused before he shook his head and turned back to Khan. A respectful bow was offered, and Khan returned the courtesy.
Magna merely looked to Pacheco with a raised brow. What the heck were they talking about? The conversation had taken a full spin from the sounds of the tones and the offered gestures.
It was when the human raised from his bow that he looked to the giantess and smiled before looking back to Khan. He spoke something of an inquiry, along with a word she recognized: 'Dieith', 'Stranger'. He was talking about her. At once, Magna stood a little straighter and filled her lungs with a breath from her nose to appear larger. A frown nestled on her face, something she imagined looked tough and intimidating. Khan looked to her and smiled a little before answering the human's inquiry. The human laughed in response, then pet the smaller lizard on the head. Were they joking about her? The thought deflated her chest, and her aggressive frown softened to a look of confused sadness. Finally, the group passed and offered waves to the one-armed lizard. He lifted his hand to return their farewells.
Khan soon climbed upon Pacheco's back, but Magna remained silent. Her chest and throat burned a little while cruel thoughts danced in her head. With his usual happy tone, Khan asked a chipper 'Barod?', which she knew was a simple inquiry as of whether or not she was ready to go. A deep exhale flared her nostrils, and without a word, she proceeded along the dirt road with Pacheco and Khan in tow.
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