1st of Zi'da, 718
*Speaking Rakahi
*Speaking Common
The sky was falling.
Or so it seemed to the Biqaj woman as she gaped up from her sloop, colors swirled and burst just like her eyes, sending flashes of light and color onto the world below. It was beautiful if not baffling, beguiling, and a little terrifying considering the city track record. But aside from the colors the sky stayed aloft, no fires rained down, nothing exploded except the colors in the night. Potential disaster averted there was nothing to fear. Her hands clapped together in gleeful abandon as the bursts of beatific colors reflected in the water, bouncing along it and seeming to linger. Of course, it was not just the explosions that pleased her, it was that the explosions were on her birthday. Until that very moment, Korva hadn't realized how much she'd needed such a simple, extravagant joy that she could claim all for her own, pretending it was entirely for her and her alone.
All good things come to an end, so even if her wonder stayed, nothing would stop the chill of the coolest season from tearing through the night and right through her cloak. But it was impossible for that to bother any with the way the sky lit up. Even if it weren’t for the sky the streets and all of Scalvoris was lit too, as if the ground and skies had made a plan to give the Biqaj the birthday she hadn’t had in arcs.
Logically she knew neither were for her but it didn’t stop her from holding the little bit to herself anyway. Plus her ma would never know if it was or wasn’t so she could tell her it was and she wouldn’t know if she was telling the truth or not. All her musings were cut short by an amused voice hollering from the boat over, “Kam! What’re you doing out? You wanna join the waters and freeze?”
“Why not? Ain’t got nothing better to do.”
“How ‘bout staying warm?”
“Nah, I don’t feel the cold, I’m from the North, this ain’t nothing.”
“Uh-huh, I can see your goosebumps from here!”
“Not unless ya can see in the dark.”
“Don’t need that with the sky like this!”
“Or the candle in yer hand, wacha need it for?”
“This ain’t for me looking, for people like you needing places.”
“Oh aye? Then yer saying ya want me to come over?”
“‘Course, just dried salmon tonight but we’ve got a fire downstairs.”
“I need to get me a hearth.”
“You’d burn yer ship down.”
Korva laughed as the plank slammed down onto her own ships side, send waves licking up the sides her of her. It’d been so long since she’d run up one she doubted she could make it across without falling into the water but that didn’t stop her from stepping onto it like she did it everyday. In her youth, the trick had been to get across as quick as possible, at least from what she remembered but those days were skewed with her own stories and hazy thoughts. In those thoughts was a breathless moment of joining U’frek for a nightly swim before her toes tapped on the deck.
It took a moment to find her feed on the new ship, knees bent to absorb the jump as she rolled with the boat to keep herself steady. A hand clapped her shoulder, bent on throwing her off as laughter floated loudly from below deck, the light of flickering candles mocking the flickering lights in the sky.
“They’ll be brining up blankets to watch the show then it’ll be down for food and bed, you gonna stay?”
“Ain’t ever gonna see me turning down a warm bed.”
And maybe Korva wanted to get a little fill of people to remises how home was, picturing how many birthdays she’d passed without anything but a letter from her own. As they got together to watch the woman found herself pressed between a half Biqaj with normal eyes and a full Biqaj with eyes swirling colors to reflect the sky. Looking at them made the words slip out before she could stop them, “The stars are for us.”
“And you know that why?”
“U’frek told me once, in the North.”
“Bullshit!”
“Ain’t either!” Korva protested with a laugh, “Swear it, least, he said he was U’frek, had the prettiest eyes. Said he wanted us to have ‘em. Said it was like colors in the north, it happens in some places. ‘Sposed to mean good stuff is coming.”
“Here? Ha!”
“Ain’t we deserve it?”
That brought murmurs of agreement that made her settle into the lie, “Any time its our birthdays, he gives us ‘em lights. Just like our eyes.”
“And lemme guess, this trials yours?”
“‘’Course it is.” Korva said with a wink to the roll of eyes that followed, they wouldn’t believe her. It was a new thing to be able to lie with the truth, she’d have to remember that later.
“But what are they really?”
“Immortals fighting, ain’t got nothing better to do I’m guessing.”
“Oh aye! Nothing better when we’re freezing our asses off and its raining death!”
The Biqaj woman raised her voice above the brewing dispute, “That why they gave us this.”
“Ya so sure about that, aren’t ya?”
“‘Course, never been more sure of nothing in my life. Ya know how they got ‘em up there? Our eyes, when we join U’frek he takes ‘em and puts ‘em up there to show everyone how amazing they are. And tonight we got ‘em cause we needed ‘em. They gave us these to celebrate on the night we gotta give all ‘em folks shelter—“
“Including you?”
“‘Course, so I could tell ya what the lights are for,” Korva agreed smoothly, laughter in her voice as the conversation turned lighter with ease again, moods turning like the tides, “And that one promised birthday dinner.”
“Did not!”
The words of dinner roused all from the deck, heading towards the smell of food below deck as the night chill wore on, the stars continuing to explode silently above them in a symphony of color. Such a simple night but it was the most content she’d felt in awhile, she wouldn’t be sleeping alone nor would she be smothered by her wooden creations. Just a quiet night with more of her own. Grin laying on her lips as always, she continued her story as they wound down, people shoving for foo, dried fish smacking faces.
“I was promised ‘em cakes too!”
“Yer a liar, Kam!”
“Nah, ya just don’t wanna share yer sweets.”
“Theres no sweets, water brain!”
“‘Cause yer hiding ‘em!”
A fish smacked her in the face as she laughed, taking the fish and heading back towards the deck. The company she enjoyed but just like with her own family the chill of the air, the smell of salt was what she craved more. It was the sound and warmth as background noise she missed. A part of her was ready to hop back to her own but warmth and laughter rang out behind her. As she watched the lights, Korva thought back to the last time she hadn’t been alone, the last night she’d slept beside someone without the aide of exhaustion or medicines. There was the night with the kids in the tavern, but the had been when she was too tired to even string words together, not a choice like this one. For some reason that made it strange to her, perhaps only because the night prior her conversation with U’frek still rang strongly.
It wasn’t like her to wonder so much, she did what she knew was right. What felt right. She let the water guide her, and right now these lights would tell her she’d been right to let go. She was right to her back into the chaos below to catch sleep and probably another fish to the face. There would be time enough to ponder the slew of days that had sent her life a-whorl since she’d arrived. The thralls, the rain, the ghosts, the warnings, all of it could mean an explosion that would not be as pretty as this one but for the Biqaj woman a knot was steadily loosening as each of the events forced her to move forward and not just away.
“Happy birthday, me. Gotta tell ya U’frek, ya know how to throw a good one. Ain’t gonna need another for arcs after this cause ya ain’t gonna top exploding lights.”
And nothing would top the lights that littered the city, lighting it up from windows like a land sky—
“Oi! We’re headed to the temple, you coming?”
“Temple?”
“Of glass, everyone goes to give out some food to anyone sleeping there for the night.”
“Well ain’t ya just the sweetest flunny.”
“Ha! You coming?”
“Nah, gonna sleep.”
“Couple of the others are and the kids, so you got babysitting.” The words were said with the glee of an exhausted parented but Korva smiled widely, not minding but not commenting as she slide back below deck while the others trekked out to the city. The kids were already asleep, the few remaining talking and laugh almost asleep where they sat. The homesickness hit hard enough to make her swallow it back down audibly before she settle, continuing her tales of exploding eyes in the sky. Everything else could wait till her birthday was over. Today, she’d just enjoy the night.
**Borrowed this template from free to use*Speaking Rakahi
*Speaking Common
The sky was falling.
Or so it seemed to the Biqaj woman as she gaped up from her sloop, colors swirled and burst just like her eyes, sending flashes of light and color onto the world below. It was beautiful if not baffling, beguiling, and a little terrifying considering the city track record. But aside from the colors the sky stayed aloft, no fires rained down, nothing exploded except the colors in the night. Potential disaster averted there was nothing to fear. Her hands clapped together in gleeful abandon as the bursts of beatific colors reflected in the water, bouncing along it and seeming to linger. Of course, it was not just the explosions that pleased her, it was that the explosions were on her birthday. Until that very moment, Korva hadn't realized how much she'd needed such a simple, extravagant joy that she could claim all for her own, pretending it was entirely for her and her alone.
All good things come to an end, so even if her wonder stayed, nothing would stop the chill of the coolest season from tearing through the night and right through her cloak. But it was impossible for that to bother any with the way the sky lit up. Even if it weren’t for the sky the streets and all of Scalvoris was lit too, as if the ground and skies had made a plan to give the Biqaj the birthday she hadn’t had in arcs.
Logically she knew neither were for her but it didn’t stop her from holding the little bit to herself anyway. Plus her ma would never know if it was or wasn’t so she could tell her it was and she wouldn’t know if she was telling the truth or not. All her musings were cut short by an amused voice hollering from the boat over, “Kam! What’re you doing out? You wanna join the waters and freeze?”
“Why not? Ain’t got nothing better to do.”
“How ‘bout staying warm?”
“Nah, I don’t feel the cold, I’m from the North, this ain’t nothing.”
“Uh-huh, I can see your goosebumps from here!”
“Not unless ya can see in the dark.”
“Don’t need that with the sky like this!”
“Or the candle in yer hand, wacha need it for?”
“This ain’t for me looking, for people like you needing places.”
“Oh aye? Then yer saying ya want me to come over?”
“‘Course, just dried salmon tonight but we’ve got a fire downstairs.”
“I need to get me a hearth.”
“You’d burn yer ship down.”
Korva laughed as the plank slammed down onto her own ships side, send waves licking up the sides her of her. It’d been so long since she’d run up one she doubted she could make it across without falling into the water but that didn’t stop her from stepping onto it like she did it everyday. In her youth, the trick had been to get across as quick as possible, at least from what she remembered but those days were skewed with her own stories and hazy thoughts. In those thoughts was a breathless moment of joining U’frek for a nightly swim before her toes tapped on the deck.
It took a moment to find her feed on the new ship, knees bent to absorb the jump as she rolled with the boat to keep herself steady. A hand clapped her shoulder, bent on throwing her off as laughter floated loudly from below deck, the light of flickering candles mocking the flickering lights in the sky.
“They’ll be brining up blankets to watch the show then it’ll be down for food and bed, you gonna stay?”
“Ain’t ever gonna see me turning down a warm bed.”
And maybe Korva wanted to get a little fill of people to remises how home was, picturing how many birthdays she’d passed without anything but a letter from her own. As they got together to watch the woman found herself pressed between a half Biqaj with normal eyes and a full Biqaj with eyes swirling colors to reflect the sky. Looking at them made the words slip out before she could stop them, “The stars are for us.”
“And you know that why?”
“U’frek told me once, in the North.”
“Bullshit!”
“Ain’t either!” Korva protested with a laugh, “Swear it, least, he said he was U’frek, had the prettiest eyes. Said he wanted us to have ‘em. Said it was like colors in the north, it happens in some places. ‘Sposed to mean good stuff is coming.”
“Here? Ha!”
“Ain’t we deserve it?”
That brought murmurs of agreement that made her settle into the lie, “Any time its our birthdays, he gives us ‘em lights. Just like our eyes.”
“And lemme guess, this trials yours?”
“‘’Course it is.” Korva said with a wink to the roll of eyes that followed, they wouldn’t believe her. It was a new thing to be able to lie with the truth, she’d have to remember that later.
“But what are they really?”
“Immortals fighting, ain’t got nothing better to do I’m guessing.”
“Oh aye! Nothing better when we’re freezing our asses off and its raining death!”
The Biqaj woman raised her voice above the brewing dispute, “That why they gave us this.”
“Ya so sure about that, aren’t ya?”
“‘Course, never been more sure of nothing in my life. Ya know how they got ‘em up there? Our eyes, when we join U’frek he takes ‘em and puts ‘em up there to show everyone how amazing they are. And tonight we got ‘em cause we needed ‘em. They gave us these to celebrate on the night we gotta give all ‘em folks shelter—“
“Including you?”
“‘Course, so I could tell ya what the lights are for,” Korva agreed smoothly, laughter in her voice as the conversation turned lighter with ease again, moods turning like the tides, “And that one promised birthday dinner.”
“Did not!”
The words of dinner roused all from the deck, heading towards the smell of food below deck as the night chill wore on, the stars continuing to explode silently above them in a symphony of color. Such a simple night but it was the most content she’d felt in awhile, she wouldn’t be sleeping alone nor would she be smothered by her wooden creations. Just a quiet night with more of her own. Grin laying on her lips as always, she continued her story as they wound down, people shoving for foo, dried fish smacking faces.
“I was promised ‘em cakes too!”
“Yer a liar, Kam!”
“Nah, ya just don’t wanna share yer sweets.”
“Theres no sweets, water brain!”
“‘Cause yer hiding ‘em!”
A fish smacked her in the face as she laughed, taking the fish and heading back towards the deck. The company she enjoyed but just like with her own family the chill of the air, the smell of salt was what she craved more. It was the sound and warmth as background noise she missed. A part of her was ready to hop back to her own but warmth and laughter rang out behind her. As she watched the lights, Korva thought back to the last time she hadn’t been alone, the last night she’d slept beside someone without the aide of exhaustion or medicines. There was the night with the kids in the tavern, but the had been when she was too tired to even string words together, not a choice like this one. For some reason that made it strange to her, perhaps only because the night prior her conversation with U’frek still rang strongly.
It wasn’t like her to wonder so much, she did what she knew was right. What felt right. She let the water guide her, and right now these lights would tell her she’d been right to let go. She was right to her back into the chaos below to catch sleep and probably another fish to the face. There would be time enough to ponder the slew of days that had sent her life a-whorl since she’d arrived. The thralls, the rain, the ghosts, the warnings, all of it could mean an explosion that would not be as pretty as this one but for the Biqaj woman a knot was steadily loosening as each of the events forced her to move forward and not just away.
“Happy birthday, me. Gotta tell ya U’frek, ya know how to throw a good one. Ain’t gonna need another for arcs after this cause ya ain’t gonna top exploding lights.”
And nothing would top the lights that littered the city, lighting it up from windows like a land sky—
“Oi! We’re headed to the temple, you coming?”
“Temple?”
“Of glass, everyone goes to give out some food to anyone sleeping there for the night.”
“Well ain’t ya just the sweetest flunny.”
“Ha! You coming?”
“Nah, gonna sleep.”
“Couple of the others are and the kids, so you got babysitting.” The words were said with the glee of an exhausted parented but Korva smiled widely, not minding but not commenting as she slide back below deck while the others trekked out to the city. The kids were already asleep, the few remaining talking and laugh almost asleep where they sat. The homesickness hit hard enough to make her swallow it back down audibly before she settle, continuing her tales of exploding eyes in the sky. Everything else could wait till her birthday was over. Today, she’d just enjoy the night.
