Log Date: 9/23-9/29/96 Log Cast: Ktai, Rayek, Sar, Zirek, Winnowill, Ember, Cutter, Tilia, Youngblood Log Intro: As Rayek has gotten sorely needed rest in the Palace, events have been moving around him; the young Go-Backs Skef and Zirek have been swayed into agreeing to go back to Blue Mountain, and while she plots to separate Rayek and Ktai, Winnowill receives interesting attentions from Alorn, who seems attracted by her Lord.... and in the meantime, Rayek himself has been asked by Ember whether he will join with both her and Ktai. Concerned over the missing PaleMoon, Rayek has declined, and the others have allowed him to continue resting, till he is ready to awaken and seek the missing healer..... ---------- Rayek's Chamber(#7481RAFL) Smaller than many of the other chambers of the Palace of the High Ones, this quiet nook is the place Rayek has appropriated for what passes as his rest. Like the rest of the Palace, it is a room of oddly rippling walls and ceiling and floor, a room where a flicker out of the corner of your eye might be a shadow -- or perhaps a lingering spirit. Ekuar's deft and ancient touch is everywhere you look, in softly smoothed stone and gently curving walls. Shaped torch-holders bathe the chamber with a warm glow when the tapers are lit. The old rockshaper has crafted this place to be restful for the spirit, radiating the care he feels for his Brownskin. Contents: Ktai Obvious exits: Corridor Ktai stirs briefly, then opens dark eyes, trying to discern her surroundings. Oh yes... Ember... and Rayek. She glances over and finds Ember gone with Ekuar, off into the daylight on some unknown errand, so she sits up slowly and gazes to Rayek. She is not surprised that he felt trapped last night... she felt much the same. But for a brief moment, she knew open companionship. The memory softens her gaze. Rayek lies there, sleeping somewhat more restlessly now than before, as his body finally begins to reach its fill of deep, exhausted rest. His hair has become quite disheveled in his slumber. Ktai almost absently reaches out and lightly caresses at his hair. So beautiful. Like him. She smiles softly. Soft, her touch. Like a wisp of a feather across his hair move her fingers. He is beautiful. No matter what he thinks. Rayek turns his head, made restless by the gentle touch, and his features flicker, caught between tenseness and relaxation. She pauses, then leans over to him and lightly kisses just before his ear and sits back up, continuing the soothing of his hair. Ktai smiles faintly. He'll never know how she treasures this... just being able to be near him... being able to provide for some small amount of comfort... [Later, after Rayek wakes up....] Sar floats through the corridors of the Palace, looking slightly distant as he surveys his surroundings. The presence of the darkskinned elf does catch his attention, though. Rayek comes walking carefully out of his chambers, testing each step as though not quite certain of its sureness. Sar floats down, light as a feather, to hover a short distance in front of Rayek. He watches him with slight interest. "You are the one in charge of the Palace. How odd." Rayek lifts his amber gaze, and with it, his black eyebrows. For an instant, something like startlement flickers across his worn features -- though they're less worn, than previously, now that he's actually gotten some sleep -- then he asks calmly, "What would be odd about such a concept?" Sar floats slightly closer, and finally lands in front of the shorter elf. "You are clearly descended a long way from the High Ones, in time and location." His pale fingers make a brief motion, perhaps indicating your shorter stature, or darker skin. Rayek straightens, ever so slightly, adding a bit of height; though he's taller by a hair or three than most if not all Wolfriders, he's still not as tall as a Glider. But he seems unruffled, if not unwary. "That would be true. Your point being?" Sar's dark eyes are calm as he starts to circle slowly around Rayek. "We (you get the impression he is not talking about elves in general) are the true heirs of the High Ones. Their direct descendants, of pure blood and undiluted talent. The Palace should obey us, and return us to our true origin. I am surprised it is still earthbound." Rayek's mouth curls up, mirthlessly, on one end. There's a flash of impatience in his eyes, but he holds it in check for the moment, as he tracks the taller elf's movements. Sar pauses, and reaches out to gently catch a lock of Rayek's hair between his fingers. "They say you have power. Perhaps even worthy of us." His voice is as calm as his eyes. "Is this true?" Rayek replies, tone cool, "Perhaps we" -- and the slight sardonic stress on the word suggests that he too speaks of only a subset of elves, though clearly with a different intent -- "are not as close to the High Ones as we would wish, if the Palace does not answer our call." He pauses at the question, then says, "I am trained by two near High Ones." A glitter of pride crosses his amber gaze, though he delivers that last as more simple statement than boast. Sar murmurs, toying for a moment with the lock of hair before releasing it. "So you could move the Palace, if you chose." As he lowers his hand, it drifts to Rayek's shoulder. Rayek's glance flicks impassively from the straight black lock of hair left to fall back into place, then to the hand on his red-silk-clad shoulder. And, at last, back up to the Glider. "And to what end would I do this?" Sar locksends ** Have you never dreamed of the stars? ** There is a faint but unmistakable longing in his send. ** Would you not rather be free, than pulled down to ground on this hostile world? ** Something in Rayek's face shifts -- closes off, even as his gaze flares up slightly with an inner light. ** I dream much, Glider, ** he sends, and the sending glimmers with a half-century's worth of clear strength lent it from walking the Palace's halls. ** But I also know these things: dreams can vanish away like the Daystar's visions in the burning waste. And the Palace is not mine alone, that I might move it like a toss-stone. ** With that, then, he moves to stride off down the corridor. Sar moves to block the stride. ** Such hurry, dark one. Have your dreams faded already? Though you may not be able to move it on your own, there are enough of us here now...that it can be moved. If we wish it to be. ** Rayek pauses, glancing over his shoulder, eyes stern. ** And who would be with us, should we move it? ** Sar locksends ** All true elves. All the elves of Blue Mountain. There is nothing we could want more. ** Sar leans down a little, taking hold of Rayeks shoulder as he sends the former, urgently. Zirek has arrived. Rayek looks up into the taller elf's face, and his own turns harsh, still. The set of his brown features is cold, but the blaze of his yellow eyes heated. He, too, sends, and now it is done with a crackle of anger that puts force behind each word, the sharpness of well-aimed spear thrusts. And the ringing, clarion tone of his mind makes his opinion all too clear... Zirek wanders in, looking for Sar. Rayek sends openly ** Glider, if you believe that the elves of Blue Mountain have exclusive claim on being _true_, on being _talented_, and above all, on being _elves_, then you are as deluded as I have been in the worst years of my life. I helped the Wolfriders and Go-Backs fight to win back this place; some of them died for it. Only in the past few eights of years have I begun to realize that caring for the High Ones' first Home is _nothing_ if you care not for all of the High Ones' children -- all elves. And I will never take the Palace off this world until that is where _all_ elves agree that it should go. ** Rayek, with that, whirls, and stalks away, black hair flying behind him in a dark comet's tail. Zirek blinks, what in the deepest troll tunnels did he walk in on? He looks over to Sar to see how he should react. Sar scowls after Rayek. "Then you have damned us to stay here for eternity!" Sar does not seem to expect a reply, whirling as he senses another presence. He stares at Zirek without recognition for a moment. Zirek kinda stands back, watching with the same expression he's perfected in turns and turns of watching his ma joining and fighting with people he barely knows. Sar finally sighs, and relaxes. "Zirek." Sar motions Zirek closer, still looking rather glum. Zirek moves over, offering a hug. Sar is rather stiff at first, but finally accepts the embrace and even returns it. He murmurs. "I hope our Lord will have better luck making him see sense." Sar says "If not..." Zirek says "Then what?" Sar considers, then shakes his head. "If she could move the Palace on her own, she would have done so. I do not like this." Zirek shrugs, "Who needs him, ain't it Tilia who makes it fly?" Sar looks at Zirek, suddenly thoughtful. "Tilia. I heard of that one. A Goback, as well...." Sar touches Zirek's cheek in a caress. "But your kind hardly seem to have the gifts needed, young one." Zirek nods, grinning proudly, "She's like me, a goback with magic. She's cool..." He tilts his head into the caress, grey eyes sparkling at you. "We're born and bred to protect the Palace..." Sar says "And protect it too well. Even against elves." He lowers his hand, and starts to pace angrily. "So close, and yet so far!" Sar throws his hands out. "I can feel it, all around me. Feel *them*. And I might as well be sitting in a hole in the ground, for all the good it does me." Zirek walks over to you, pacing by your side. He slips an arm around your waist. Zirek's soft grey eyes gaze up at you. "Why're you in a rush?" Sar stops again at the question, blinking down at Zirek. Zirek grins at you, "You live forever... wait 'em out." Sar sighs, and leans against the nearer wall. "My memory does not go back far. But for as far as it goes... I have dreamed of the stars. Sometimes, they whisper their names in the night." Sar says "Perhaps I would have been more patient, before. But time is new to me, once more." Zirek scratches the back of his head, "I dunno... I never listened. I'd take a a tumble in the furs or a good fight over all the stars in the heavens." Sar's lips twitch in a smile. Then he laughs. Sar says "I feel no urge to fight you. As for the other...." Sar holds out his hand to Zirek. "Perhaps you can help distract my impatient mind. Come, let us find a more quiet place." Zirek's eyes light up and he GRINS at you, nodding. [And after Rayek spars with Sar....] Entry Hall(#8823RAF) High-ceilinged, airy, this chamber widens out from the doorway that serves as its entrance from outside to an expansive room, filled with little more than strangely ornate walls and the occasional column, rising up to the ceiling far overhead. Closer inspection of the walls reveals patterns shaped into their surfaces, sometimes of wings, or flowers, or the lithe forms of elves -- and sometimes of images that defy description. The air is full of a subliminal shimmer that plays at the edge of elfin senses, a tingle that feels welcoming even in its eldritch oddness. Among the fanciful shapings in this wide chamber can be viewed a 'black spiral' of rock resting on a low column. A long winding stairway twines its way up out of this chamber and into the upper heights of this place; you might be able to find other ways out of here, but the only other exit in immediate sight is the archway and doors that lead outside. Contents: Winnowill Bright Green Tent(#9206JOes) Obvious exits: Corridor Winding Stairway Doorway Rayek steps out of the corridor to his quarters, looking about warily; the Preserver, Petalwing, is perched on his shoulder, and as the two of them come into the main hall, the tiny being's voice can be heard piping, /... naughtybad flyhighthings go home soon!/ Winnowill walks the room, to all eyes deep in thought. Magic senses might tingle as she passes you. Rayek lifts a hand to silence the Preserver, then scowls softly. Still here. Well, there's little to be done for it. Resolutely, Rayek aims for the stairs, footsteps tapping slightly on the clear crystal-stuff of the floor. She pauses, a dark smile thinning her lips. "Yes... it has been said that absence makes the heart grown fonder... and so... Rayek... you would not see me off?" Dark eyes seem to laugh as she regards Rayek from behind. At that, Rayek does allow himself to pause, though he doesn't turn from his vector towards the stairs. Petalwing flits, starts to pipe, /No need talk to nastybad longsofthair highthing,/ but Rayek smirks, and says over his shoulder, "I don't think my farewell will give your heart any more fondness, Winnowill; more's the pity." Winnowill's voice is low for a moment. "You chose well with your clothing." Then her voice raises. "Once again, over-stayed my welcome, did I? Or was I ever welcome to begin with?" She crosses the room to stand by those stairs, looking at you with her darkly smiling eyes. On Rayek's shoulder, Petalwing grrs tinily, while the airwalker turns on the step. His arms cross. "Ktai chose the silks," he says, "and Ember the necklace." Two steps up the stairs, he's closer to being eye-to-eye with the tall healer than usual. Winnowill's smile darkens. "No answer, Rayek?" Rayek replies, neutrally, "I gave you what welcome I could." Winnowill smirks faintly. "Indeed. Yet wherin lies the truth? All elves are welcome...? Or the fact that there is little welcome for me? My attempts at peace have failed. So I see war must prevail." Winnowill, with that, turns and walks out of the Palace, sending as she does so. Winnowill steps through the doorway outside. Winnowill approaches the huge stone structure. Winnowill has left. Ember steps in from outside. Ember moves away from the huge stone structure nearby. Ember has arrived. Ember comes in, bearing in her hands whatever small furry food-like creature might live in this area, and licking her fingers. ** Rayek ** Rayek turns, from where he's standing on the stairs, his expression turn down in a a pensive frown. His eyes lighten slightly at the sight of the huntress, however; he inclines his head, and greets, in kind, ** Ember. ** Zirek steps in from outside. Zirek moves away from the huge stone structure nearby. Zirek has arrived. Ember crouches, finishing the dressing of the Small Creature quickly and efficiently--fear not, most of the dirty work's been done, and while blood is left on the Palace floor, she'll clean it up. "You look better." Zirek walks in, looking around, more subdued than usual. Zirek nods, moving over by Ember. For the first time in days, he's not in Sar's presence. Rayek doesn't manage a smile; his frame is tensely poised. He says soberly, "I'm well as can be expected, with PaleMoon missing as of yet, and _she_... well." He shrugs, once. "PaleMoon is yet unaccounted for?" he goes on. Ember lifts a handful of stripped, still warm, meat to Zirek. ** Hungry? ** She does not, does .not. comment, on Sar's absence. Zirek shakes his head, "No thanks." His normally lean frame has grown almost emaciated of late with his loss of appetite. Zirek grins a little, though. Ember frowns slightly. "You should eat." She offers the handful to the airwalker, instead, her eyebrows asking the question while aloud she replies, "So far. No scents, either, not that I can catch." Rayek once more inclines his head, stepping down off the second stair up from the floor, where he'd been perched. "Thank you," he says, voice low; as Ember herself might, he nibbles at the raw flesh. And sends, ** I have risen to seek Ekuar and Youngblood, now that I can think straight once more. PaleMoon must be found. And the Palace must remain guarded. ** Zirek crouches down by Ember, "No thanks. Raw meat really isn't all that appetizing," he grins. He looks up at Rayek, "So send someone for her" he says. Ember's eyebrows rise again. ** We'll guard it, ** and she means her family, ** if you need to search the skies. /She/ won't take it from us. ** Another slice of meat is taken, and she tears at it with sharp teeth and a grin at Zirek. ** Raw's best. ** Rayek remarks as he chews, ** I am surprised that Youngblood has not already left. But Ekuar has sworn to seek his daughter. And I... ** His face turns more grim, though, ironically, he almost smiles to the huntress. ** _She_ is leaving, or so she has told me. Among other things. She was... annoyed that I did not give her a farewell. ** And at that, Rayek's amber gaze smolders. Zirek nods, "Ayah, we're headed out soon.' Ember starts to speak, and then becomes quite still, a hunter unseen. "...'We're'?" Zirek nods, ducking his head. He'd hoped for a better way to tell her. "Yah. SHE'S gonna heal Skef's arm and... I'm gonna study under Sar.' Rayek's gaze flicks to Zirek, and his black eyebrows rise. He swallows his mouthful of meat, waiting, though he doesn't speak or send; his expression holds question enough. Going...to study...under Sar. The range of expressions that cross Ember's face are priceless all, and she does not say anything for several moments. "I...see." Zirek looks down, blushing. At that announcement, though, the airwalker, too, goes very still. At last he says, shortly, "No Go-Back has cared to seek my advice in anything for years now; I shan't give it, here." With that, he turns, intending to head up the stairs, but he glances at Ember first. You locksend ** I shall leave you to explain to him why this is unwise? ** to Ember. Zirek mutters to Rayek, "I wanted it to be you..." Ember locksends ** <> He ... he knows, Rayek. He won't listen. Sar's all but bewitched him. <> ** Rayek blinks, then, and stares down at Zirek. Zirek sulks, "I just wanted to learn to use my power... not this." He rises. Ember stares at her meat, appetite lost, then raises a hand to cover her eyes, trickle of blood tracing down her cheek. Rayek says, blankly, "You wanted... to learn... from _me_?" Zirek turns to Ember, reaching for her hand. He looks up and nods briefly. Zirek says, "Ain't no glider. Can't lift, don't want the blood. But Sar...." Zirek shrugs, "He wants me.' Zirek puts his arm around Ember, although whether offering or seeking comfort is unclear. Ember takes the boy's hand, then pulls into the embrace, with a sigh, leaving a smear of blood over her eyes when she moves. Zirek gently wipes the blood away, expression sad. Ember, awkwardly, aloud, says, "Don't go." Zirek gets that kinda sick little expression that you get when someone's taking your heart and stomping on it. "I can't... Ember... he -wants- me." Still standing at the foot of the great stair, and seeing little place for _him_ in Ember and Zirek's conversation, Rayek frowns bemusedly and watches the two in their brief embrace. Ember's jaw sets. "He wants..." She struggles with words, more familiar with the ideas in terms of challenge and wolf-fights than the minions of the Mountain. "He wants to dominate you. For you to belong to him. It's what he wanted of me..." Zirek nods, lowering his head. "Ayah..." he says softly. Tilia comes down the stairs from above. Tilia has arrived. Cutter, who has taken to longer bouts of wandering outside, had to come back inside *sometime.* It can't be helped. And, here he is, just inside the doorway. His expression matches Rayek's, or nearly, though it's more befuddled than bemused. Rayek, still with an awkward expression, turns to slip quietly up the stairs. His gaze falls first on Cutter -- where'd _he_ come from? -- and then Tilia; then, his face shifts through two more flavors of awkward. Tilia sits comfortably on a low stair, her face blank and her eyes scanning across the room, meeting Rayek's quite briefly. Ember's words turn to sendings, out of frustration, out of hope that the undeniable truth will make a difference: ** /She's/ no better, Zirek; worse, even. Sar might leave you something. Winnowill won't. ** Again, Rayek's mouth moves ever so slightly towards a wince. Clearly wishing to abandon this conversation, he nevertheless does not, paused there on the bottom-most steps and eying Ember and Zirek uneasily. Zirek releases his embrace, backing away. His head is lowered and shoulders slumped in that obvious expression of having already submitted. once a challenge is lost, why keep the act? Ember's shoulders drop, as well, and, roughly, she sends, ** I'm sorry. ** Rayek finally says gruffly to Zirek, "What the Gliders want is irrelevant, young one; what do _you_ want?" Cutter's expression lightens, and his shoulders relax. This, again. Cutter's blue gaze falls on Zirek as well. Expectant. Zirek looks at Ember and you get a clear idea of what he wants. Acceptance. Approval. Tilia recognizes that look. That's the look of a wolf who's been bad and knows it. You locksend to Tilia, Rayek, without turning, and with his sending muted to be ignored or accepted as you might choose, tells you, ** Zirek says that he and Skef go with Winnowill and the Gliders, when they leave. ** Tilia locksends ** If they want. ** Ember straightens, smiles crookedly, not happily, at Zirek. ** I won't second-say you, Zirek. You've a strong head on your shoulders: don't let it forget us 'Outsiders'. ** You locksend ** Yes. ** to Tilia. Zirek turns and gives Ember a tight hug, midway between a desperate cub's hug and a lover's embrace. Tilia locksends ** Are you still soft? I would have expected someone to put some sense into you. ** Rayek blinks, then flicks an amber glance up to Tilia's silent small form. Ember answers the hug in the same manner: between worried mother and lover. ** Two turns of the seasons, Zirek, ** she sends suddenly. ** Two turns, and if you're not away from that place by then, I'm coming to find you. ** You locksend ** I suppose that'll depend on what you call softness, and what you call sense. ** to Tilia. Tilia's silent small form is the still, stony-faced statue interrupted only by a blinking, flick of her eyes over the scene at the floor and a slow, rhythmic breath. Zirek nods, "Aye... we'll come by Lostholt before returning to the frozen mountains." Zirek grins a little, a shadow of his old self. Cutter's jaw sets, lightly. Ember, firmly, says, "You'd better." Zirek grins a little more, rakishly. You sense in a locksend, Tilia's sending is as flat as usual, ** At least you have that left. ** Ember smiles, and nods, stepping back a little, and finally actually -noticing- the two new arrivals. Tilia is little to notice, her eyes looking to Rayek now. She has an air of disappointment about her. Zirek lowers his eyes, kinda hanging close to Ember. Rayek, most of his attention still on Tilia, gives her another faint ironic smile before his lean features school themselves into neutrality. "I must find Ekuar and Youngblood," he says to the hall at large, though his gaze remains on Tilia, "and we must speak of finding PaleMoon." You locksend to Tilia, Rayek adds, quietly, ** Yes; I have that. ** Cutter inhales a long breath, and says, almost smiling, "Think of it like a soulname quest, cub." To Zirek, of course. "To find answers, and to find your own Way." Rayek's comment earns a betraying flicker of a glance, before the wolfrider chieftain looks at Zirek again. Ember slides her arm around Zirek's shoulder, comforting, and glances at Cutter. "I told Rayek we'd watch the Palace, if he needed to search by air..." Zirek nods, looking respectfully to Cutter. "I'd be scared, I think, except Skef's comin' too.' Tilia says "I'll watch the Palace." Zirek leans against Ember. Cutter's back tightens again, imperceptibly perhaps, except to those who know him well. He nods. "Good. It's good to have company, in times like that." Zirek nods, grinning a little. Rayek looks down the stairs again. To Zirek, he says levelly, "Go into Blue Mountain with more watchfulness than I did; perhaps it will aid." To Tilia, he nods, once; to Cutter and Ember, he adds, "Ekuar swore to search for his soul-daughter.." Very briefly, his voice roughens, just a bit. "I swore I would not leave Ekuar." Tilia says "How sweet." Ember locksends ** <> ** Ember shoots a brief glare at Tilia. Zirek seems little concerned. Sarcasm is the GoBack way. Tilia looks back casually and sloe-eyed to Ember. If Tilia unsettles him, Rayek certainly gives no sign of it; to Ember, he simply offers another one-sided almost-smile. "We know from the sending to her that she is north; I will ask Ekuar and Youngblood when they wish to leave, and perhaps if we send together, we will reach her." Ember snorts faintly, apparently at Tilia, and glances around the room. "Where .is. Ekuar?" Tilia says quietly, "Asleep, in a small room he's shaped to meditate in underneath the fountain room." Ember nods after a moment or two. Rayek nods, then, gravely. "I should go to him; if you will all excuse me." With that, he turns, to walk quietly off. Side Corridor(#6192RFL) This is one of the smaller corridors through the Palace, and gives less of a feeling of airy, open space than the larger passageways do. The damage that the Palace suffered is no longer in evidence here; translucent walls and columns once again swoop smoothly and gracefully to a delicately arched ceiling. Obvious exits: Rayek's Chamber Entry Hall [And, as Rayek waits for Ekuar to come out of his meditation...] Winnowill locksends ** /Soft as velvet, the quiet send carries an odd feel to it./ Rayek...? ** You locksend ** What? ** to Winnowill. Winnowill locksends ** /Again the velvet send... and it feels uncertain, yet still caressive./ Will you... have a word with me? ** You locksend ** You did not give me enough words, before? ** to Winnowill. Winnowill locksends ** Rayek... for those words.. I apologize. /The send gathers a bit more, seeming less uncertain, but still akward./ I ... was wondering something... ** You locksend ** You... apologize, ** to Winnowill. Winnowill locksends ** /The send quiets/ Would you... oh bother. Could you ... forgive me...? ** You locksend ** For... give you. ** to Winnowill. Winnowill locksends ** Yes. /She seems slightly amused now./ ** You locksend ** For the words exchanged... yes, I will forgive you. ** to Winnowill. Winnowill locksends ** /Velvety-soft./ And my actions? ** You locksend ** Your actions in the Palace were not directed... at me. ** to Winnowill. Winnowill locksends ** But can you forgive me? ** You locksend ** If... it is truly meant... ** to Winnowill. Winnowill locksends ** /Quiet./ Might I see you before I leave? ** Entry Hall(#8823RAF) High-ceilinged, airy, this chamber widens out from the doorway that serves as its entrance from outside to an expansive room, filled with little more than strangely ornate walls and the occasional column, rising up to the ceiling far overhead. Closer inspection of the walls reveals patterns shaped into their surfaces, sometimes of wings, or flowers, or the lithe forms of elves -- and sometimes of images that defy description. The air is full of a subliminal shimmer that plays at the edge of elfin senses, a tingle that feels welcoming even in its eldritch oddness. Among the fanciful shapings in this wide chamber can be viewed a 'black spiral' of rock resting on a low column. A long winding stairway twines its way up out of this chamber and into the upper heights of this place; you might be able to find other ways out of here, but the only other exit in immediate sight is the archway and doors that lead outside. Contents: Winnowill Youngblood Bright Green Tent(#9206JOes) Obvious exits: Corridor Winding Stairway Doorway Rayek steps out of a corridor somewhere, his pace measured, thoughtful. Winnowill stands just within the doors from outside, her hair loose and flowing about her. Instead of artfully draped about her, her cloak is wrapped about her with an almost lack of notice. Winnowill Tall and regal, this elf holds herself with grace and ease. The Lord of Blue Mountain is sure of herself, yet appears to remain in total relaxation... no matter what she does. Her long flowing hair is loose, flowing about her along with the ends of her velvet black cloak. Soft white and black feathers accent the cloak and move in the air about her. Her ever-changing eyes watch you with a mixture of regal impatience and calm self-assurrance and her lips quirk into a thin smile. She inclines her head to you. Rayek notes Winnowill's location, then, after a moment, straightens slightly and walks towards her. Winnowill looks towards Rayek quietly, offering nothing more than a thin smile. Youngblood glances at Rayek, and shrinks back against his tent, away from them both. Winnowill remains as she was, looking to Rayek. Then, ever so slowly, she extends a hand. Rayek studies Winnowill's face and eyes, his own narrowed somewhat, gaze darkened, wary. Then he regards the offered hand, weighing it; at last, his own brown one lifts. Winnowill waits, neither raising her hand further, nor lowering it. Either he will take her hand, or no. A gesture of apology has been offered; something in him, a glimmer of wistful hope, perhaps, finally leads Rayek to accept it, by dint of closing his fingers about Winnowill's slightly longer ones. Youngblood regards the two with narrowed, suspicious eyes. At the instant your fingers close around hers, a soft and seemingly lonely send touches your mind with a velvet softness akin to new-fallen snow. ** Rayek... join with me one last time before I leave? ** Rayek draws in a breath; his amber gaze flickers with something like regret, something like longing. His head shakes, ever so slightly. You locksend ** Winnowill... I cannot. There is no time. The moment Ekuar rouses... we must search for the missing one, PaleMoon. ** to Winnowill. Winnowill doesn't move, simply watches Rayek. Winnowill locksends ** /Very quiet now./ I see... /It is almost as if you can sense something like a closing up of something./ I shall miss you, my soul's mate... ** Rayek's eyes soften, slightly, sadly. You locksend ** Thank you... ** to Winnowill. Winnowill's smile fades, and for a moment, her own eyes seem sad before the old haughty glimmer appears. To Rayek, it might just seem false... Winnowill nods slowly to Rayek, sending nothing further. Rayek, with that, lowers his hand, gaze troubled. Rayek says, quietly, "Farewell." Winnowill says nothing. Perhaps she can't. Youngblood stays silent, watching expressionlessly. Winnowill turns, moving to hold her cloack closer to her. She pushes open the door, the slight air difference lifting her hair and swirling it about her. It is almost like vanishing into a mist as she steps out. Winnowill steps through the doorway outside. Winnowill approaches the huge stone structure. Winnowill has left. Rayek watches the tall healer go, then turns, frowning to himself. Youngblood glances at Rayek and arches an eyebrow. Rayek says, very quietly, "She returns to Blue Mountain." Youngblood sighs, "At last!" Ktai locksends ** Rayek? ** You locksend ** Here. ** to Ktai. Ktai locksends ** Are you safe? Where are you? ** You locksend ** The entry hall. I am without harm. ** to Ktai. Ktai has arrived. Ktai almost glides into the hall, looking about. Youngblood glances at Ktai, then significantly, at Rayek. Rayek stands there, back turned away from the doorway out into the desert, expression strangely pensive. To Youngblood, he finally says, shortly, "When Ekuar rouses, we speak of finding PaleMoon." Ktai looks to Rayek with concern in her eyes. Youngblood nods to Rayek, frowning in concern, "We should. SOon. I worry about her so much..." Winnowill locksends ** /For the briefest of instants, her send caresses you like a soft touch to your soul. Then, like her, it is gone./ ** [End log.]