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Thread: The Foundling [Dathomir]

  1. #1

    TFA Open The Foundling [Dathomir]

    Sometimes, at night, she could still hear them screaming.

    The cool air of a spring night after the rain brought a specific sense memory back, feelings more than dreams as she slept. Small, terrified faces, weapons flashing, and the blood... body parts strewn on a road...

    Mesh'la woke with a start, drenched in sweat, her blankets wrapped awkwardly around her. The smell of rain was heavy in the air as she threw herself from her bed and out into the night.

    She needed air.

    Once outside the rain doused her, pouring over the settlement of the Clan of the Undead Fires, running down the paths and puddling in the rancor pens. Mesh'la stood still, letting the water run down her face as she concentrated on breathing.

    Her heart slowed, returning to a normal rhythm as the rain pattered to the ground around her.
    Last edited by Lilaena De'Ville; Mar 25th, 2019 at 03:05:50 PM.

  2. #2
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    It was custom, dating back to the the Undead Fire clan’s earliest days, to post sentries on watch at night. They had not survived - thrived, even - because they took their strength and security as a given. Each night, a coterie of Nightsisters watched the clan borders, their minds and senses seeing far further than their eyes ever could. Cariadwen did not mind watch duty so much. Night time was when the magick of Dathomir felt its strongest. When she breathed in, she could feel the power of the clan, of the world around her. There was nothing to alert her to anything threatening to the clan, nothing to disturb her -

    Something pricked at her awareness.

    Cariad lifted her head, pushing her hood back, her head tilting a fraction in the direction she had felt.. something.

    With a frown, she got her to feet and paced the well-worn path towards the source of the disturbance: Mesh’la. Standing out in the rain, looking like a drowned veshet.

    “The dreams again?”
    Last edited by Cariadwen; Sep 3rd, 2019 at 01:06:11 PM.

  3. #3
    Mesh’la turned to look at Cariadwen, blinking rain from her eyelashes. She shrugged, wrapping her arms around her body.

    ”They come and go. Tonight they came.” She looked down at herself and her soaked clothes as if she was seeing them for the first time.

    Cariad was one of her closest friends - it was not surprising that she had found her in the night, especially as she had watch duty. Now confronted with the sight she must be, Mesh’la felt a trace of shame.

    ”...I did not mean to disturb anyone,” she said, wet hair clinging to her face.

  4. #4
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    “The only person you’re disturbing is yourself,” Cariad said, shaking her head.

    Dreams, prophetic or otherwise, were common among the clan. Some of her sisters spent hours upon hours every day pouring over the meaning of their visions, trying to divine some hidden meaning from within. Cariad was not one of them. Leave the soothsaying to the seers, she thought. The fact that she rarely recalled her own dreams as more than amorphous shapes and colours might have had something to do with it.

    “Come on. If you’re going to be up and roaming about anyway, you can help me walk the perimeter.”

  5. #5
    ““But it’s so wet out,” Mesh’la joked feebly, running her hands through her sodden hair. She gave herself a shake like a veeka bird and nodded.

    She didn’t say anything else as she followed Cariad, trying to center herself by controlling her breathing. She was twenty-one years old, she shouldn’t be having nightmares like a child.

    In the cool night air the dream faded, and by the time they reached the perimeter of the settlement the rain had slowed to a drizzle. Mesh’la looked out into the surrounding wilderness.

    Somewhere, out there, she had been discovered as an infant. Taken into the tribe to be raised, she did not know anything about her birth mother, except that she had not been strong enough to keep her. She was either dead, or weak.

    The little spark of anger that thought brought helped wash away the last strands of emotion the nightmare had brought forth. Mesh’la breathed deeply, and turned to Cariad as they continued to walk.

    ”Do you ever want ...more than this?” She gestured at the sleeping clan. As Cariad followed the gesture with her eyes, her brow creasing, Mesh’la shook her head.

    ”Never mind. Quiet night, other than bedraggled orphans standing in the rain?”
    Last edited by Mesh’la; Apr 16th, 2019 at 09:20:07 PM.

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    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    “Quiet night,” Cariad agreed, with a glance back at the settlement. In all of the nights that she had served as sentry, it had only ever been the Undead Fire witches themselves that had caused disturbances. For some, the long night of solitude was the perfect time to ferment old grudges, hours in which to mull over the should-have-been and could-have-been.

    “This more you keep talking about… what is it?”

  7. #7
    Mesh’la ran her fingers through her damp hair, teasing out a tangle as she replied.

    ”I love our clansisters - and brothers - and I know my place here. Training, hunting, tending to the animals...” Her voice trailed off and she looked down at the strand of hair between her fingers.

    ”I know there’s more out there.” Mesh’la lifted her eyes to Cariad’s, then up to the clouds above, where the stars were on a clear night. “Or even just to be able to explore the lands of the cataclysm here. I suppose I... I just want to be let off the leash for a while.”

    She smiled faintly, still subtly trying to do something with her tangled hair. Bed head straight into the rain had left it in a state.

  8. #8
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    “You know, no one will hunt you down, if you just… wander off in search of adventure” Cariad said, gesturing vaguely off to the wilderness beyond the clan’s lands. It wasn’t unheard of, for the clan to venture a good distance from their home. That was how they had found Mesh’la, after all. Then again, it wasn’t altogether common. They had their land, and everything beyond was… well, beyond.

    “Though I don’t know how you’re going to get up there,” she added, with a glance at the stars, smirking as she spoke. "Maybe if we pray hard enough to the spirits, they'll have a starship crash on clan grounds.”

  9. #9
    Mesh’la grinned at that thought. On the other hand, they had left their homeworld before... her smile faded, and she looked out toward the boundaries of the clan.

    ”You’d miss me if I left for too long,” she teased, looking back at her friend. “It is an interesting thought, though. Maybe I should go and explore.”

  10. #10
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    Cariad watched as her friend stared longingly out into the night. It didn’t matter that the evening was quiet, that there was almost nothing to see. Caried knew that Mesh’la would be picturing all of the possibilities of what could be out there, rather than what was.

    When Mesh’la looked back at her with a smile, her smirk softened. “Just.. at least do it on a night when I’m not on watch. That way, I might be able to come with you.”

    Then, her cheeks dimpling with a grin, she added, “If you get lost or eaten, they’ll only send me out to find you anyway.”

  11. #11
    Mesh’la matched Cariad’s grin, and the rest of the watch passed without incident.

    When they were walking back into the settlement, passing the rancor pens and their giant occupants, Mesh’la suddenly stopped and grabbed Cariad’s wrist, turning her to face her.

    ”Will you come with me? Just for a week or two.” She hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it. “It was practically your idea in the first place. I will tell Ja’anio - I know where we hunt and we could go the other way. Gather information and bring it back. Maybe even find the caldera from the Devastation, although that is probably too far a journey. Or -“

    Mesh’la paused, taking a breath, and realized that she was babbling. Her cheeks flushed, and she dropped her friend’s hand, looking down.

    A rancor overshadowed them, walking past slowly along the edge of the pen. A male on the other side of the paddock was putting out breakfast for the beasts.

    ”You can say no if you want, it’s fine.”

    Please don’t say no.

  12. #12
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    The dawn had a way of shining the light of clarity on the mysteries of the night before. What seemed unknowable in the darkness could be made plain by the light of day. Rather than putting to bed the idea of leaving the clan grounds, however, it was as if the first rays of the morning had set light to Mesh’la’s curiosity once again. She was… serious. The look on her face said as much. There was a convinction in her expression that Cariad didn't think she'd ever seen before.

    One of the smaller rancors nudged Cariadwen’s shoulder with it’s big snout. She was so caught off guard by Mesh’la’s request, so lost in thought, that the beast knocked her forward a half-step, toward Mesh'la. The spirits are not being especially subtle this morning.

    Pursing her lips in an unsuccessful attempt to fight off a smile at that thought, Cariad exhaled slowly then reached for her friend’s hand.

    “A week or two.” She squeezed Mesh’la’s fingers. “If Ja’anio says yes.”

  13. #13
    Mesh’la beamed, clutching Cariad’s hand.

    ”I’m sure she will. I feel it.” She drew her friend in for a quick hug, unable to stop grinning. She took a deep breath, blowing it out slowly.

    ”I will seek the spirits help in choosing a path. And I will ask Ja’anio.” Mesh’la did a little shimmy on the path, too excited at the thought of the trip to contain herself. “It will be like when we went on our first hunting trip when we were kids, except we’ll know what we’re doing and won’t panic when someone pokes us awake in the middle of the night.”

  14. #14
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    “I won’t panic. I’m not convinced about you,” Cariad said with an amused smirk at her friends little dance of anticipation.

    Mesh’la’s excitement ought to have been infectious, but Cariadwen knew she had to keep her expectations in check. There was no guarantee that the trip would be allowed, after all, however much an eager little part of her hoped it would. The tribe encouraged a certain amount of exploration, and hunting parties were hardly rare, though they were typically formed of more than just two witches.

    Realising that Mesh’la was still looking to her expectantly, Cariad waved her off.

    “You.. go get Ja’anio’s blessing and I’ll.. put together some packs with supplies.”

  15. #15
    "Yes, of course, okay!" Mesh'la's eyes gleamed with delight and she forgot to say goodbye to her friend as she turned and darted off down the path.

    Ja’anio was a tiny Nightsister, barely five feet tall on a good day, and she oversaw the hunting education of the younger witches. She had some ability with the Force, but the sheer weight of her personality was enough to keep everyone in line around her. When Mesh'la presented her idea of an exploratory trip, Ja'anio raised an eyebrow.

    "Just two witches? What if you encounter -"

    "We are more than strong enough to take care of ourselves," Mesh'la interrupted, before she could help herself. "And with just the two of us, stealthy enough not to be noticed."

    Ja'anio narrowed her eyes, but a grin slowly took over her face. "Fine. If you get eaten, you get eaten. I'm sure you'll make a tasty snack for a rancor, even if there isn't much meat on you. Cariadwen had better come back, though, she pays better attention when I'm talking to her." She shook her head at Mesh'la's grin.

    "Go on now, go! Before I change my mind. Get your duties done for the day and I'll assign someone else to it tomorrow. If you're not back in a few weeks we'll just assume you're dead." Jaa'nio winked as she waved the young witch away.

    "Thank you!" Mesh'la backed up and walked away as quickly as she dared. She still had things she was expected to do around camp, and after a quick stop to tell Cariad the good news she was off to do her work.

    They decided to leave early the next morning, and Mesh'la spent a restless night in her bed. Not because of dreams this time, but the anticipation of getting out and away from what she'd known her whole life. Maybe she'd just keep going, walk all the way around the planet just to see what was there.

    Despite not getting enough sleep, she was bright-eyed at dawn when she met up with Cariad, greeting her with a hug and a grin. "I can't believe they're letting you go with me. I'm sure Ja'anio is just glad to be rid of me for a few weeks."

  16. #16
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    “I can’t believe it either. You’re sure she knows what we’re about?” Cariad asked, eyeing Mesh’la with a suspicious that was only half serious. Not waiting for a reply, she shouldered one pack and tossed the other, underarm, to Mesh’la.

    As they walked down a path that would lead them out of the clan grounds, they passed sisters and brothers already engaged in their normal morning routines. Only a few heads turned their way, studying them for a curious moment before they went back to their work. It was unlikely that any of them knew where the two young witches were going or why.

    “So, do you know where we’re going?”

  17. #17
    Mesh'la pointed out in the direction they were headed, and then shook her head and grinned.

    "The caldera from the eruption is somewhere to the northeast, so I figured we'd head that way eventually. But to leave the valley we have to go west in order to find a path north. At least, that's what the sisters I talked to yesterday all said."

    She breathed in the cool morning air with a satisfied look on her face, adjusting her pack. "I've only hunted nearby." Mesh'la looked sideways at Cariad. "I notice you only asked if I knew where I was going."

  18. #18
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    “That's because I’m following you.”

    It was only a short way further to the edges of the clan’s occupied territory, to the perimeter that Cariadwen had wandered so many times while on watch. Beyond that, the clan lands extended further out into hunting grounds and untamed forests, though it was rare for any sisters or brother to be found out in those parts of their domain without good reason.

    Crossing that invisible line, Cariad exhaled, wondering not for the first time whether she had good reason to be going anywhere. The clan would survive without the two of them, she reminded herself. Surely, no one would begrudge them the time away, especially if they came back with something that would benefit the clan.

    “If you could discover anything out here,” Cariad said, looking ahead to the forest, “what would it be?”

  19. #19
    Mesh'la paused at the border as well, without the slightest urge to look back toward the Undead Fires Clan.

    "I don't know," she lied, but her cheeks flushed gently and she looked down at her hands. "Something new?" She did look back then, over her shoulder at where smoke was curling lazily into the air from someone's cookfire, an almost guilty expression on her face.

    "Maybe I just want to get away and spend time with you," Mesh'la said, trying to change the subject with a flippant answer. On closer consideration, however, perhaps it was all intertwined? The color rose in her cheeks again, for a new reason, and she started forward, inwardly cursing for wearing her emotions on her face so plainly.

  20. #20
    TheHolo.Net Poster Cariadwen's Avatar
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    Mouth curved up a touch at one corner, Cariad watched Mesh'la walk on for a moment before following on after her.

    “I know the real reason behind all of this… you’d do anything to get out of having to muck out the rancors.”

    Mesh’la glanced back over her shoulder and Cariad’s smile grew bigger, her stride growing longer as she moved to catch up.

    “Don’t worry. I'm sure there's something more exciting than more rancor out here," she said, catching Mesh’la’s hand in her own. “We’ll find it.”

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