We Ourselves Must Walk the Path [Solo]

[Hilana Chenzira]

44 Searing, Year 123

[Closed - Solo]

"You know, I think I can kind of understand why you like this so much," Athalia admitted as she sat behind her sister in Hayima'el's large saddle. "I was so young when we went to Tertium, but we did grow up on camelback, didn't we? He moves faster than the average camel, no?" she looked down at the piebald bull as Hilana was as relaxed as anything in the sunshade of the saddle.

"He does, yes," Hilana agreed with a nod. "He's larger than most, so his stride means he's going to eat up more distance with each step. I didn't think he'd be this big, because Sakima isn't large for a cow. She's just average-sized. Beautiful, but average. His sire isn't a giant either, but larger ones do come in the bloodline. I think Sakima's grand-sire was quite large. He wasn't a successful racer, but he wasn't meant to be. Too big for that. Hayima'el did well at the Derby, though. I trained him for it. We got lucky and placed well, but we needed to if I want to establish him as a viable stud."

"I know you don't want to hear this... but you really are our father's daughter." Lia told her gently. "You've got that same mind and aptitude for business and planning, Hilana. I'm not saying it as an insult, but a compliment."

"I thank you," Hilana chose to take her at her words. She didn't necessarily like the comparison, but she had heard it more than once from others. And she knew full well that with her stubbornness and pride that there were a lot of similarities between her and their father. But for all the fights and arguments that she had had with him, he was successful at what he had set out to do. Mostly. He hadn't managed to get her married yet, but that was going to be a big fight that was going to come sooner rather than later. She could only hope that she had bought herself some time.

[Hilana Chenzira]

As Hayima’el crested the dune, the women were able to get a good look at what lay beyond. And for Athalia, it was sand. Sand, sand, and more sand. But Hilana was looking for signs and trails, any prints that showed signs of life. The wind that gusted through here were sure to erase lighter prints. But she could use Semblance out here if she wanted to, to see what had tread upon the sand before they had come to it. And while she needed to practice that too… it was important to do without the enhanced sight, if only so that she didn’t hamstring herself in keeping her skills and senses sharp. As they walked, Lia glanced at her little sister as Hayima’el turned slightly when Hilana’s heel applied a faint bit of pressure to his flank. “Do you see something, soror?” She wanted to know, trying to see just what Hilana had found. Because so far… this just looked like an endless sea of sand. She didn’t doubt her ability to navigate them; she knew that they would return home to the Citadel in due time.

“If you look there,” Hilana indicated some indents in the sand that Lia hadn’t noticed, guiding Hayima’el in that direction, and turning him so that he would walk parallel to the trail. “Jackals. The pack went this way.” There were numerous, canine paw prints in the sand in front of them. “Quite a few, too, if I had to guess. Might be a larger family group, or some came together to go after something larger than usual. Probably came through late last night, or very early this morning. I expect that they were hunting. We’re a decent distance away from the Citadel and town that they likely felt comfortable. I expect antelope have been through here, but I’ll have to have another look for those tracks.” She scanned the horizon, sitting up a bit more in the saddle. She wasn’t seeing them yet, but that didn’t mean that the wind hadn’t blown them away.

“They would have pursued the antelope, no?” Athalia looked on, squinting at the sands. She was trying to find the same sign that Hilana had, and once it was pointed out to her, she did see those outlines with the splayed toes. “They are built for chasing.”

“They are,” Hilana agreed. “They’re meant to pursue, though they don’t like large prey since they’re not the biggest predators out here. Frequently successful, yes, but largest, far from it. They’ll scavenge if the opportunity arises, though, so possibly someone or something caught something larger… or the hoofstock that came through was a smaller variety. We’ll know when we find their tracks. Duiker or oryx, from where we are. Duikers are the smaller ones, oryx are more of a danger with those horns of theirs… Or maybe something else.” She was so tempted to activate her Semblance and take a look at the echoes of this place, to try to feel what the creatures that had traveled through had felt… and possibly figured out which was which. Could be a goat that escaped and ran off, or some sheep or other livestock when someone got careless. Maybe they’d see the results.

Hayima’el returned to his walk, and Hilana sat back in the saddle. Not all the way, what with Lia behind her, but she scanned the horizon, and let the silence become companionable once again. There was no antelope tracks to be found, and what they did find was that the tracks converged - more gathered, and as they walked along, the younger Vastiana noted the spread of the paw prints became longer. “They were picking up speed here. Running. Chasing, maybe. Or perhaps they were being chased.” She was thoughtful as she sought to read the story without resorting to the Echo. Their ancestors hadn’t relied on Semblance to tell the story of the sands, and she was not going to start now. She would have to work the trail the traditional way and see what came out of it.

“There are no other prints to go with these?” Lia looked around the sand, frowning, before she realized where Hilana’s thoughts may have been going. “Ah. Something in the sky might not leave prints in the sand, would they?” She craned her neck to look around the colourful sunshade with its many tassels at the clear skies overhead. She might need to tactfully suggest a new one before much longer. The fabric was beginning to show how much it was used. And this way she could scriven new protections into it.

“No,” she agreed, “they wouldn’t. I wonder if some young wyvern decided they might make a decent snack out here. Meat is meat.” It was worth considering, at the very least. There were no prints, and it didn’t make sense for jackals to just run otherwise. She knew the habit of the wild dogs was to conserve their strength until there was a bonafide target, and then pursue. Possibly they had come together to hunt, and in doing so had drawn the attention of one of the winged draconid predators to themselves. A wyvern might not have wanted to waste energy and acid on a few small dogs, but a larger number of them… that became worth it.

“That would have been markedly one-sided,” Lia rested against the cushion that she had placed between herself and the polished wooden bar behind her. The big bull camel continued to eat up ground and distance, and Hilana agreed with her. It would have been. Now they just needed to follow it through. Lia knew better than to ask about going back; her sister’s drive would never have allowed it. Her curiosity had been piqued, and she was going to see this through until the end. But it did make for an interesting way to end the day and their ride.

They finally came upon a stained patch of sand. Hilana’s nose already told her that this was where that one-sided fight had gone down, and the camel was not keen to get overly close. What was left was scraps of hair, meat, and wyvern acid. “Not the biggest spray, but that could be because they didn’t need to with how the pack was bunched up. But this is where the end of the line ended up being for them.” She jumped off of Hayima’el with a large jar and scooped up some of the stained sand, making sure to avoid getting it on her fingers. The lid was tightly sealed shut and it went back to her saddle bags. That would be a project to do with Alchemy, albeit a small one, but Domina Clelia might approve of it. The sisters shared a look over the disturbed sand and Hilana activated her ring. It was time to return to the Citadel.

“To be as one with those who came before us, those who live on in our blood… we ourselves must walk the path,” Hilana murmured. “They are our history… and we are the product of their hopes and dreams.” She led Hayima’el through the portal, Lia still on his back.

[Talisman]

Review

Name: Hilana Chenzira

XP: 8 Points, no magic
Injuries/Ailments: None
Loot: None

Notes: It's always fun to see how the two of them interact.