Post by Ellis Danton on Nov 14, 2016 14:04:17 GMT -7
The Day of the 5th of the Scales of Judgement, 5152 Outside of the Attonja Tribal Grounds |
| The night had gone long with festivities. Ellis was right in that it wasn't an every day occurrence for the Attonja to feast and party, particularly during these times of war, but before the invaders came they enjoyed festivals, and held many in celebration of their gods, joining ceremonies, and even funerals. For Ellis, this was especially surprising - funerals in Aurcaele were so quiet, and mournful. They involved many words, many tears, and the planting of seeds with a body. For anyone to celebrate in a way such as this for a funeral was interesting to Ellis, if a little strange and offensive. But this party was not for the fallen. This event was for celebrating a new future, one that Ellis was intended to usher in. He did not realise then the kind of faith they were putting with him and Xanthe -- but he did realise that some were less convinced. Those were the ones that made him want to work hard. Those were the ones that had him going to bed long before the music and dancing were finished, and those were the ones that had him waking up at the break of dawn to learn, and teach. In fact, the two of them awoke before dawn could crack the sky. The world was still dark, but Xanthe had shaken Ellis awake and pulled him into his boots. She handed him his crossbow and him follow her - if he hadn't been half asleep he would have wondered if there was something wrong, but instead he just followed. Luckily, there hadn't been anything wrong - Xanthe just wanted a change of scenery for this lesson. As the sun rose and the forests became dappled with sunlight, he was finally coherent, and Xanthe was able to explain that they needed to focus and concentrate. He needed to teach her, and he needed to learn from her - and to do that they would focus. For Xanthe, focusing either meant religion, or hunting. Since Ellis had learned much about their religion already, this seemed like the next step. The two spent the day in the forest alone together, trading words and - more importantly - sentences. They learned how to form full thoughts, which allowed them to communicate not just what their words meant, or what they were actively doing - they could say what they had done, what they wanted to do, and what their people were doing. "W-what did Kav'nok s-say yesterday? When you g-g-got him to st-stand-d-down?" Ellis asked, having not been able to rid himself of the fire the warrior had lit under him. Xanthe was hesitant to answer, but she had to trust that Ellis would not take it as a personal offense. "Kav'nok brother... He was kill by Aurcaele men when they fish. He... He want you to right it." Ellis nodded his understanding and offered her the minor corrections that could help perfect the sentence. "I... w-wish I... I d-didn't know. I wuh-w-would have apologized. I would... I w-would have p-promised to fix it--" Xanthe stopped him by putting her forehead to his, "I know. Ellis good." Then it was her turn to ask a question: "L'rus joj Aurcaele fux tui us Jaosi S'na? L'rus joj fa tui se saf?" (What did the men from Aurcaele say at the God Tree? What did you say to them?) Ellis had almost forgotten his promise to those men. He had forgotten to watch the sky for the flare. He hoped he hadn't missed it already - if he had, he knew his life would be over the moment the Aurcaelis saw him. There was a chance, however, that Pelagia had not returned to the Fort yet. Or that she was making plans and wasn't ready for him. He hoped she would give him a chance. "Sai je zes snyts fa, en yi. Yi ut'm se t'vaum los fi daujan, graah Pelagia Xista utheys fa. Yi sox'm oh t'ra raan yi tui os, utheys Attonja, di raan fa tui Attonja, tra lod ta. S'ra lod lux's se t'sev sot lun, di len'm sepasan." (They do not trust you, or me. I ask to speak with my leader, Chief Pelagia Xista about you. I think if she hear me say it, about Attonians, and hear me speak Attonian, she will see. She will want to stop this war and work together.) "Yi lux's sus," (I want that.) Xanthe nodded, offering some corrections to Ellis' own speech. Ellis smiled and nodded as well, taking into consideration her corrections as he spoke again: "Sai lod tres ux naj dosa ox'se sa t'mi se tui sai naji se fas. Te la ruba se lusq." (They will shoot a red light into the sky to say they ready to meet. So we have to watch.) Xanthe looked concerned suddenly, and stood from the bushes they hid in, grabbing Ellis' hand. "You will not see naj dosa from here. Yi place is hidden far from fa, Ellis. I will send..." She thought of one of the first words he said to her-- "Scout." Ellis was surprised, he hadn't considered Atton was so huge he couldn't see a flare. But then again, he had only scouted areas with miles of Fort Fabelle. He had never cross the country like he now knew Xanthe had. He nodded, and let her lead him back to the village. There, she would gather up scouts to cross the country and look for the red light -- and Ellis would look for Kav'nok... He had some things he wished to say to the unsettled warrior. |