Souls Bound in the Sand (Closed to Armphid/Misanthropiclove)

[Armphid]

Kissing Radiant Son

"Your Plentifulness, we must depart within the hour!" The man who spoke had skin weathered from much sun and wind. His hands were rough and calloussed, his frame both strong and bent from hard work over many years. His face was both pleading and afraid. "The Dune People will have us if we pass through that place at night. Unless we leave now, there's well be not enough time! We'll have to wait until tomorrow."

"It's...absolutely impossible!" The man he spoke to was seated behind a large desk, imported from the verdant woods and master craftsmen of the East. It was tall and long, decorated with many expensive but useless treasures, a not altogether poor representation of the man behind it. He was fat and soft, accustomed to easy living. His fingers gleamed with rings. Despite the breeze blowing through, and the fact that it was a cool day for the warm South, he was sweating slightly, and seemed distracted and tense. 'You, hnn, you will have to wait. Once I...recieve word that...your papers are in, huhh, order, you may leave."

"But, Your Opulence-!"

The fat Guild Factor gasped, then leaned forward, hands spreading on the surface of the desk, "I will! Ah, I will hear no more. Go and make ready, withh luck, you may yet...l-leave on time." Then he seemed to relax, letting out a long, slow breath with a smile. He waved his hand at the caravan master, the other man bowing, glaring at the floor, and then leaving the office.

The Guild Factor pushed his chair back, looking down into the area of the desk for his legs. "It will be as you asked, I will clear them to go immediately." The chubby man smiled, "You bargain well, and do not disappoint. Perhaps I could convince you to stay? I have need of a way to...release the stress of my work."

From under the desk, a young man was climbing out and standing. He was taller than the factor by a good bit, with a hardy, athletic frame conditioned into hard muscle by the savage North, wiry and strong without sacrificing agility. He wore simple, functional, slightly loose clothes in a dark blue that had been bleached somewhat by the sunlight, yellow at the cuffs and trim of his tunic. He was handsome to the point of being beautiful, his face fine, noble, and strong. His eyes were steady, determined orbs of emerald, and his hair was like a rich cascade of copper to the nape of his neck. "You're offer is generous, but my work is with the caravan, and those I hope to meet." He lifted a finger to wipe off a thin trail of cum that was sliding down his chin. "I thank you for your willingness to deal and see reason." Radiant Kissing Son inclined his head. "I will take my leave and inform the caravan master we may depart immediately."

The Factor looked disappointed, but waved for him to go. Radiant Kissing Son turned and left the man to his graft and his shallowness. It would be dealt with in time, but for now, the slug of a man had opened the way to a great undertaking. The caravan would be well past the places where the Dune People dragged men and woman to die and devour them by the time nightfell, but he would not be. He would be there, waiting. And then, he would begin to bring this part of the world into a more beneficent frame.

 

[Misanthropiclove]

Taredo was flying back to his homeland of the South, at the moment in the form of his totem: the steel shadow. He had left when he had Exalted and had been found by his mentor who had sealed his Caste. She had told him that like several of their kind, his Caste was not under the same auspice of Luna that it had been in the old days. She had been a cryptic old lady, prone to riddles and jokes which had left Taredo rather frustrated. She had even had the gall to tell him his new dreams were some type of prophecy or perhaps a window into the past. All his life Taredo had been able to control his dreams with complete lucidity, yet since he had Exalted his dreams had resisted his attempts to question or change them, leaving him feeling oddly helpless even as he felt so empowered. His mentoring had ended, if not only because she had not been a Full Moon, but also when she gave him a prophecy to follow.

"There is one who would help you in your quest. One born of the cold and savage lands above and gifted with the might to melt the ice. One who's cold logic will help your heated passion with your people." Then she had smiled and turned back to the stars in her typical infuriating way like there was some great secret she was leaving out, "And perhaps one who's heat can melt your own inner cold."

It had been a blessing and he had left rather early. He had easily found his people but had yet to rejoin them, and even to keep too much of a track on them. He knew he was about three days away from them since he had seen them last. He just knew it would be a waste of time to come before them without anyone to help. He knew his limitations, and being a chieftain was one of them. Besides, how long would they follow him into the desert searching for some person from a "cold" world that he didn't know where was? How many would die while they left their designated hunting grounds for this errand? No, he was here to serve his people. It was not the other way around.

His sharp night eyes spied something in the distance, perhaps a mile away. His wings shifted and he began to dive, more curious about this speck that didn't look like it belonged on the desert dunes. His bird form flitted about, the feathers dotted with what could be said was picturesque vitiligo, the white spots on the feathers imitating his silver tattoos on his other true forms. The bird got closer and saw that what was on this dune was a man.

Then the visions began.

A woman, himself?, running in the woods, jumping from branch to branch as a horde of creatures followed her. The creatures were like nothing Taredo had ever seen, or even thought of. He couldn't get a good look at him, but the woman's laughter echoed in his head before the vision flashed away.

A swarthy Western man with purple hair, checking out the sea in front of him. Another man came up behind him, one of the sun children. He was turned around and kissed romantically and felt the love of equals sparking between them.

The Western man again, angry beyond reckoning, chasing down something that smelled of tainted copper and irreverence. The ships were surprised by some gigantic saw-bladed tail and the boat beside his shattering into a million fragments of wood and steel. They should have brought the magical boats. They were too foolish. Support wouldn't get there in time.

The Western man's corpse held in the arms of a sobbing man. The same man from before?

A new life, such grand senses! Yes, a fresh Exaltation like before. No confusion from the Castelessness...what was this?

Worry. Why is he doing this? How many lives have they had together? Has he died before? Why can't I remember? Why? Too many doubts. Too few pieces to the puzzle.

Pain. Fear. Anger. Betrayal. Shifting woods. Shifting rivers. Land that follows no rules. Pain. Unbearable pain. A woman in white weeping for her wounded children. A sound of reality breaking, the laws of Creation warped to their very breaking point as a screech of unimaginable agony and sanity. Then there was no pain. No sanity.

Taredo found his eyes opening and looking up at a man he loved with every once of his body. A man who he knew immediately to be of the Unconquered Sun's brood and someone he had shared a deep, deep connection with before. Several times. Yet it was a sense of deja-vu that just couldn't be put back together. It was so overpowering that Taredo did not even question how he had ended up landing on the sand from his flight.

He also looked so...different. He was not from the South. He might be the one who his mentor had meant. There was only one way to find out.

He shifted, small flickers of pale Essence radiating from his body as he took the form of a Southern female, her dark skin melting into the night. Taredo didn't quite trust to use his true form. Not yet at least. "You, child of the Nightmare Lord, are you searching for the Dune People? Do you come from a land of cold?" It was direct, Taredo wasn't much for stepping around. His left arm held a bracer of crystal bolts, signifying that he was most likely not a spirit, not this far from Rathess.

 

[Armphid]

The caravan had gone. It had taken some convincing for them to leave him behind, but the passage of time had worked in his favor. They would not risk the whole caravan to the Dune People for the sake of one man's life.

The sun should be scorching him, searing his skin until it peeled from his body. The harsh wind should scrape and scour him. But the spirit of the hardship surviving mendicant was with him, and they touched him not. He sat down on a dune, a blanket spread out under him, a bag full of provisions at his side. Feeling his patron's rays beating down on him, he focused his mind and waited.

It was many hours later when he felt the tug. Something was coming. A shadow flickered over him, his eyes snapping up to see a great bird, spinning down towards the ground through the twilight sky. Yet something was not right about it. Or something was very right.

Radiant Kissing Son leaped to his feet as the bird landed, and his head swam. There was a heavy sense of knowing, of familiarity, of deep and desperate want, of heartfelt love, swarming around and through him. He remembered...

The westerner's darker skin rubbed over his, their bodies entwined, heat and pleasure soaking through him. There was a rush of Essence, and he was joined now with a great bird, groaning as it filled him.

Another time, and he held a dying man in his arms, weeping, his love lost, slain. "I will find you," he promised, swearing it to himself as his power flared, "But first they will pay."

He stood, feeling different, a robe falling from his body, striding into the water towards a startled youth. He reached out to pull the youth close, cradling him to her breasts, "I found you, again, my true one," she cooed.

She cried out, pushing hard one last time, and a cry split the night as their son drew his first breath.

Her body burned, blackened and seared by treacherous magic. Blind in one eye, she spilled out into the streets of the Imperial City, into the waiting legions of the Dragon-Blooded. She snarled, determined to reap her due before she fell.

Endless walls of jade. Nothing. No feeling or time. Just floating. His thoughts turning to many faces, flickering through his memory, all the same, all him, all his love...

He staggered back, one hand covering his right eye as if he expected it to be gone. His gaze was a bit wild as the bird's form blurred and twisted, rearing up into that of an exquisite Southern woman, her eyes confused, suspicious, wanting. "You, child of the Nightmare Lord, are you searching for the Dune People? Do you come from a land of cold?"

Radiant Kissing Son looked at the woman, placing a fist against one open hand and bowing, though his eyes stayed on her. "I am no child of nightmares, but one of Creation. As are all under the eyes of the sun and moon." He straightened up. His pale skin seemed to gleam in the darkness of night. "I come far from here, across the seas and the Blessed Isle, to the North, where the winds are enough to freeze the very air in a man's lungs. Yes, I come from a land of cold. My name is Radiant Kissing Sun, and by your appearance, I would guess you are from this land of fire. But I know well that in the case of many, to judge by such things is unwise."

He took a step back, smiling courteously. "Will you tell me as much of yourself as I have to you?"

 

[Misanthropiclove]

Taredo eyed the man bowing before him and said nothing. The form he used walked around the man, taking in his form as he judged him in his mind. His memory was rushing through the thoughts he had had before, the fragmented memories that made no sense. The ones that stated he should love this man. His upbringing won over against the centuries old fragmented memories.

"You are a child of the Nightmare Lord. The four-armed sun champion who scorched my people into obeisance in the old days back when we were cruelly lorded over by the Great Liar. The careless father who abandoned us to the care of the Sweet Moon Caretaker who sent us both mother and father from her merciful womb. Perhaps you seek penitence from your lord's uncaring attitude? Perhaps you are a test for me to kill. Perhaps I am completely wrong."

The circling ended and Taredo looked deep into the eyes of this Northern man. "My sobriquet is Sunscorner." Taredo waited for a flinch, perhaps some sense of weakness where he would end this trivial name game and lunge for this person's throat and take his flesh for himself. There was none.

Good.

"My tribesmen will be at this very spot in three days time. If you can wait right here and survive the harsh days and cold nights, I will introduce you to them in a way they won't immediately try and destroy you. If her prophecy was correct, you are here to help me, Sun Child. I will accept it as I have no one else to give me any. Make no mistake; I would never work with you otherwise and as soon as our business is concluded, I shall be through with you." The final words were just slightly off from the woman's clipped, angry tone. As if she didn't quite believe it herself.

Taredo started shifting once more, taking on the appearance of the steel shadow once more, the stolen woman's voice levying his last words, "Stay and prove yourself worthy or run and prove yourself prey. I am satisfied either way." The last bit was choked off as the vocal chords rearranged themselves. With a buffet of the powerful wings Taredo launched himself up at the light of his moon maiden, his sapphire eyes aimed down at this strange man. This strange man who conflicted him in so many ways.

As much as he wished, he couldn't stay away. He returned later that night when he was certain the Exalt was asleep and laid a dead desert hare near the blanket before slipping back into the sky. As much as he wished, Taredo couldn't watch this man starve to death. Besides, how was he to find his own food if he stayed in one spot?

As the Unconquered Sun arose, Taredo took the form of a sandswimmer and dove under the protective grit of his homeland, his body listening for tremors as he dreamt.

He saw a woman out by a lake, the fear of the world around her. The lady was collecting fruit and a monkey came and grabbed the basket. The lady did nothing but reach into the lake and produce a shiny stone and grabbed the monkey's attention. With a quick toss the lady launch the stone into the air, the monkey leaping after it and dropping the fruit. The monkey landed in the water and the woman caught the fruit.

It was some time later, as the lady had been aged by years. She was selling produce and every time she would sell some to a person dressed in extravagance, she would place a shimmering pebble into the bag. The same monkey from before ran after the stone, coming back with it and the fruit. The lady seemed pleased and fed it.

People with weapons. They had discovered the game and killed her pet. She stood, looking scared and wept. They ran for her, intent of retribution on their mind as the land under them gave way. The woman looked down from the pit with a contemptuous sneer on her face. Then came the rains.

A laughing maiden, waking her up. The lady looked shocked as the woman takes the form of a monkey and hands her a piece of fruit. The lady bites down and the moon shines on her. She is now in the trees, both ape and woman, both trickster and warrior. The world needs freed.

Taredo awoke, the cooling sands telling him it was safe to leave the cover. He grumbled to himself, coming out as odd lizard clickings. More bizarre dreams. More ones from times he didn't remember. He was getting irked. Time to go check on the Sun Child.

 

[Armphid]

Radiant Kissing Son listened as the dark skinned woman circled and ranted about past grievances. His eyes narrowed a tiny hair. Idiocy. Everyone was so concerned with what had happened in an age that no one could even remember, that they let today slip into horror and even worse injustice. How petty such feelings were, when all of Creation was at stake!

But he did not interrupt. He listened. This person, if it was a person, was telling him much. Likely far more than she meant to. If it was a she. A very curious being. He wanted to know more about this person. For many reasons, not the least of which was a feeling that he should know this entity. Know it, and care for it, and it for him. It was a distant emotion, as if recalled from across a great expanse of time, but strong regardless.

He spoke only once, as the woman became the avian again and beat it's powerful wings to soar into the night sky. He called after it, "Which of us do you seek so firmly to convince, Sunscorcher?" It was him, in part. But he was just as sure that much of the performance had been for the shapeshifter's own benefit. Radiant Kissing Son watched the bird vanish into distance, then turned back to the blanket he had set out. Three days here. Not leaving would mean he could not gather food nor water. A grim task. But one he would succeed it. The Solar lay back down on the sheet. His thoughts turned again to the strange being who had confronted him, that he felt so deeply he should know. Was it a Fair Folk? Or a spirit? He doubted either. He felt certain it was one of the Lunar Anathema...but it was rash to accept that as fact, it was only a feeling.

The next day when we awoke, he found a dead hare beside her blanket. The northerner looked at the animal and smiled sadly, "No, you would have nothing to do with me at all."

The day was taken up in digging a small pit to urinate it, covering it with a heavy cloth after, an empty cup in the bottom and a rock in the cloth. That would gather some water. Along with the waterskins he had, it would likely be enough.

Stripped to the waist; Radiant Kissing Son breathed deep of the dry, sandy air. The sun bore down on him now, bathing him in it's light and heat, mercilessly. To a lesser man it would be a punishing scourge. But to him, it was a blazing crucible, burning away what was impure in him, leaving only purpose, virtue, and unmistakable power. He slid into a stance, moving through the motions of the katas he had learned so painstakingly. He had to wait. But he would not be idle.

The long hours of the day passed; the small figure moving in the shadows in practiced, clean, powerful motions. As dusk began to descend, he paused in his labor. Would Sunscorner come to him again?

He prepared a fire, setting the now skinned hare to roast. If the changer came, he would be welcomed as a guest, with what little hospitality could be offered.

 

[Misanthropiclove]

The sand near Radiant Kissing Son parted as a lizard head appeared out of the ground. It took in the sight and disappeared once more, sand parting effortlessly to make way. A few miles distant was a place with water, a rare sight in the South. Taredo changed into his normal form, white skin appearing with a faint glow under the moon. He bent down and gathered some of the water into a water skin and turned back into his avian form, flying back to his mate.

The bird landed and took in the marks on Radiant Kissing Son, watching to see how well he fared. A small flicker encompassed the change of shape, Taredo now in the body of a thirty-something pudgy Realm man. Those in the know would recognize the form of Ledaal Varwei, a minor patrician of a tributary that went missing a few months back. He had been one of the first forms Taredo had taken. He enjoyed it.

"You have done well your first day, Sun Child." Taredo handed him the water skin and sat down, the slight jiggle of his fat distracting him for a moment. He ran a hand over his stomach and looked back at the man who had come to help him. There were similarities from the woman the night before: they both bore the same wicked crystal weapon and they both wore what seemed to be tailor fitted steel shadow armor over their body.

Part of Taredo wanted to ask how Radiant Kissing Son had been, if there was anything he could get for him, some need he might be able to lessen. The orichalcum strong memories of what the Unconquered Sun did to his people let nothing bend. Perhaps it was some sort of Solar magic. He had heard they had been very charismatic.

The scents of the previous nights were still on Radiant Kissing Son and they mingled with today's. Taredo's nose inhaled the scents of sweat, burning flesh, and minor tell tale signs of sex. He almost cracked a smile at the idea that Radiant Kissing Son might be pleasuring himself while waiting for the Dune People.

"My appearance challenges you? I am many faced, like the Silver Lady. If you are here this time the day after next, you will see my true form."

Taredo enjoyed these games, but he was ever curious. You never got anywhere by just letting people tell you what was what and believing it, "Sun Child, why would you wish to help the Dune People at all? I thought my kin were under the notice of your kind. Both human and Sun Touched. At best, I thought we would register contempt. We eat your kind, and I would bet you my virginity I am the only one of my type that considers humans even remotely the same species." He didn't know why he let slip he was a virgin. He hadn't realized how utterly relaxed he was around this man even as he awaited some type of devious tricks.

 

[Armphid]

The Solar had noted the appearance of the lizard with interest, momentarily wondering if he should strike this source of food that had presented itself. Yet it was not behaving like an animal. So he merely looked back at it, nodding in acknowledgment of its' presence. He continued to tend to the meat he was preparing after the creature disappeared. Soon after, the bird swooped in again, this time dissolving into a far different shape. "Good evening," he greeted the shape shifter, "and thank you for your compliment."

Again as the being paced about him, Radiant Kissing Son listened. So much was given away in those questions, in that speech. Did this one even know how much was being revealed? It was young, perhaps, or merely inexperienced in social matters. When the being now wearing the shape of a man finished, the pale skinned northerner gestured toward the fire, "Please sit and partake of this meal with me, and I will answer your many questions as I am best able." He cut a few pieces of meat for his guest with his iron knife, offering them to him on the hide taken from the creature.

"I wish to help the Dune People because they would benefit from it. Helping them would also benefit everyone who lives near them. It will also benefit me and my goals. Thus, it is a course of action that can achieve a great deal of good, for a great many people." He cut himself a piece of the hare and chewed on it before swallowing. "You have made mention of past harm done, of indignities, though I note you mention nothing of your people's depredations or murderous cannibalism, yet neither of those are my concern."

Radiant Kissing Son took a drink from the water skin, then offered it to his guest. "I am Chosen of the Sun, and as such, I have a great task before me, as do all like me. And all like you, Beloved of Luna." He smiled sadly, "You take the form of that great bird, and have flown far, I am sure. Perhaps far enough to see that Creation is breaking down. The shadowlands encroach more everyday, as does the Wyld, while the forces that may have a chance to hold them back squabble over remnants that will be stolen from the victor before they can be enjoyed." He shook his head, "It must not be so. The scattered peoples must put aside the past or there will soon be no future for Creation. That is why I have come here. Humans, and I include the Dune People and myself in that category, must no longer fracture but come together. This effort is the first of many, and will be a great thing, when it succeeds. The gains those groups involved will accrue will serve as an example to many others."

The Solar looked at his dinner companion again, eyes keen, an easy smile on his handsome features. "And what of you? Why allow me this chance, if you truly believe all you have said to me?"

 

[Misanthropiclove]

Taredo would not take any of the food, having fended for himself enough already. He listened intently on the banter and then cocked his head minutely at the questions given to him. "I have little recourse. Those gifted by the dragons are too fractious amongst themselves and would most likely turn on me for my roots and my blessings. No other Champions of Luna wish to have time in this endeavor, or are too busy. You are my only choice." He blatantly left out that for some reason he trusted the Solar against his better judgment. Plus, he had heard of Lunars living from the First Age. If that was true than a few years, even a few decades of working with this man would be like a drop in an ocean of life.

"Besides, you Sun Children could work on some penitence. Perhaps you can also help restore some love for the Sun for my people."

Taredo looked into the fire, staying silent for some time around this man. He feared opening his mouth if just because of his last slip up. There was just something about Radiant Kissing Son that made Taredo feel relaxed and welcomed. Was this how the Great Liar had made his people feel? Like they were important even as she had them be slaves in a temple of sex?

"I will take my leave now. I shall return tomorrow night to see how you are doing." He collected his water skin from the Solar and leapt into the air, black feathers pushing him higher as the form wrapped around him.

Again, Taredo found he couldn't stay away from his mate. The next morning would find a dead snake and a few small birds laid out just like the rabbit had been before. He had waited for the Solar to drop asleep before he left these gifts, and a keen nose would detect that he had been there just before the sun had risen.

Under the sand the steel shadow left just enough room to watch and see what Radiant Kissing Son would do during the day. Taredo could live without one day's sleep. He was also just curious. This way he could also spy and see if this Solar was as treacherous as he had heard. There was a part of him who didn't think he would be, a part that wanted to get rid of this silly test and hold him under the protective sand while they slept. Yet pragmatism won over against emotion, as it always had with Taredo.

 

[Armphid]

"If my actions do that, then all the better," was the pale skinned young man's only reply to the Lunar's comment about penance and improving the Unconquered Sun's image. That was all well and good, and in terms of the latter, something he wished to do. But it was also unimportant to this task. He had said that he wasn't concerned with the past. Particularly since as far as he had been able to discover, no one really knew what the past was. "Though you avoided the heart of the question, I will not press you. Surely you have reasons of your own."

He ate in quiet then, his guest apparently happier with it. Perhaps he'd realized how much information he'd accidentally given away. Before his speech, Radiant Kissing Son had not known the being's origins or nature, but he had revealed both.

The Solar stood up as his dinner guest announced he would be leaving. He bowed again, "Travel safely, Sunscorner, I look forward to our next meeting." He watched as the apparent man leaped up into the air, becoming the huge raptor and winging away. "How magnificent a sight he is!" Then he sighed, "And how conflicted. Or perhaps that too is another test..."

~~~~~~~​

He rose just before the sun the next morning, as was his custom. Radiant Kissing Son stretched, then rolled into a somersault and came to his feet. Someone had been here. Recently. Within the last few minutes. There were still minute signs of passage. His eyes fell on the dead animals left behind. Very curious, indeed. "He is a kind host, if a mysterious one."

He took a few minutes to clean the animals as best he knew how; snakes and small birds of this kind were not something he had dealt with before. He ended up deciding just to roast and eat the birds as they were. They were too small for him to be able to bone them with success. And it would be unwise to spread much offal and blood about. Something would come for it; and while he was not concerned with danger, he did not seek it out either.

After his meal, he took out a charcoal stick and a piece of parchment. He had practiced his physical skills and martial arts yesterday, and would the martial arts again today, but now it was time to exercise the mind. Though waiting was not his preferred activity; it did give him time to practice.

After some time, he set the writing implement down. He was being watched. It was a palpable feeling. He couldn't tell from where or by who, but it was strong. "Perhaps," he spoke aloud, "if you are curious about my presence here, it would answer your questions better to come out and speak to me." There was no response. Radiant Kissing Son smiled a bit, "So be it, but since I am still alive, I must assume you bear me no ill will. So I hope you do not mind if I talk, though there is no need to reply. I am glad of the company."

 

[Misanthropiclove]

Taredo said nothing, he didn't even move. Sure, Radiant Kissing Son was mainly a blur thanks to the sunlight, but he figured that perhaps something else was around here as well. He was right.

Lumbering over a dune was a large, somewhat horselike shape. It got closer and it became what looked like a three-eyed, large mouthed lizard. The beast looked like a carnivore on steroids, but anyone from the South knew them to be rather harmless, even helpful should the situation call for it. What Taredo didn't know was what was going to transpire next.

The beast looked up at Radiant Kissing Son and pulled back it's thin lips, revealing a horrific portrayal of a smile, "Greetings, Sun Blessed. I was wandering a few yards distant and smelled the lovely aroma of ashes. Would you be so kind as to allow me to devour the remnants of your fire from last night? I have wandered for a while without a meal." The beast spoke perfect Old Realm, all the beasts did. Some knew Flametongue, some knew Low Realm, it just depended on the people they interacted with.

With the remains of the night's fire devoured the creature bowed to Radiant Kissing Son and looked about, "You do know, Sun Blessed, that this is a hunting line of a Dune Person tribe, don't you? I am not sure if they could all defeat you, but they do not take kindly to your type. Old wounds and ills done to them. I believe a guild slave caravan is coming also, it should pass here by tomorrow. I believe they will be on its trail." The beast sounded vaguely female, as female as a lizard could.

The Ash Devourer would dispense a bit more local knowledge, and when she realized she couldn't get the Solar to move she went on. Taredo had never heard of the creatures just giving information away, it was bizarre. Perhaps they had been made to act differently around the Solars.

The rest of the day would go by with little interference, with Taredo listening in and watching how Radiant Kissing Son acted. He would make internal notes as to how it went before night fell.

As the cold of the night ended Taredo took the form of the sand swimmer and moved father away from Radiant Kissing Son before he exited the sand. He once again drank at the oasis and gathered water before taking wing. He swooped down on a rather large burrowing rodent and kept it in his talons as he flew closer to his erstwhile partner.

He landed and transformed into the chubby Realm man and offered the water skin up to Radiant Kissing Son with few words. An axe was removed from the back of the armor where it was kept sheathed and used on the rodent, cleaving the flesh open. The axe looked to be a makeshift item made of sharpened human bone and tied sinew to keep it in a proper shape. It had been strengthened somehow, most likely through Alchemy by the chieftain of the tribe.

Taredo said nothing, eagerly devouring the still warm meat as he cut it from the beast, "Would you like some, Sun Child?" He smiled, revealing blood soaked teeth with bits of meat still flecked between them. Perhaps this was another challenge. Perhaps he was just finally warming up to Radiant Kissing Son.

 

[Armphid]

Radiant Kissing Son inclined his head, but then shook it, "Thank you, Beloved of Luna, but I have eaten already this day, and would not deny the hunter the best of his catch." The delicate looking man smiled easily, "Eat your fill, and then we shall see what can be done with any that remains."

He had spent some time after the Ash Devourer had left contemplating the words it had offered him. It was most unusual. He knew little of such creatures, but for it to be so helpful seemed strange. Particularly since it's information had to do with exactly what he was here to deal with. It was a bit too pat. He had continued to mull it over as he had practiced his forms and stances, sparring with imaginary foes while his mind wrestled with what to do about the information given to him.

Taking another long drink from the water skin, he decided. The Solar rose to his feet, "I have learned that a Guild caravan will be here tomorrow." His brow darkened, for the first time since they met, negative emotions showing on the young man's beautiful face. Anger and disgust. "A slave caravan." As much as he tried to stay temperate and centered, he could not abide slavery. The abuses inherent in its very nature were repugnant horrors, ones he would purge from all Creation in time. Time that could not come soon enough. "Your people follow them, I have heard. To pick off weak or injured slaves, or any who escape." His anger grew at that. Contemptible. Abomination! "So they may be upon us before the time of trial you imposed upon me is finished."

Radiant Kissing Son looked his dining companion in the face. Whoever's face he wore, anyway. "...I will not let them take anyone. If I must move from here to do so, I will. What then will be made of our agreement, Sunscorner?"

 

[Misanthropiclove]

"You misunderstand. The Guild uses my people as the scary people of the night. Those that will get them if they try to escape. They then take the most crude and obstinate slaves and cripple them and leave them for us so we don't attack the caravan and perhaps end up killing THEM. If any slaves do escape it is much more likely dehydration, starvation, sun exposure, or other natural hazards get them instead of us. It works out in the end. None of us die taking out a few crippled slaves."

Taredo tore into some more meat, letting his words sink into Radiant Kissing Son's head, "I do take an issue with your righteous indignation though. I'm the first of my kind in a while to see our kind as anything close to related to humans. At best we see humans as you would see cattle. Are you terribly angry when people slaughter cattle to eat? Do you worry about the rights of your cattle? Do you get angry when parts of one herd are taken to use in another? Most likely you don't. Yes, the Dune People need a new food source, but that will come in time. At the moment I would rather them take a few dregs of society, or perhaps the entire slave caravan, than starve and not get helped."

He ripped through the giant rodent's stomach, spreading undigested grasses and cacti pieces everywhere as he cleaned the meat off to continue eating, "Tell you what: If you can, by the time the caravan comes by tomorrow, get enough food for the tribe, I'll help you save the slaves from the caravan. In fact, they could be the first group of humans we try to inculcate into the Dune People tribes."

He let that stand for a while before moving on, "If not, I will allow the caravan on it's way and accept the offerings they wish to present to the tribe. I will also make sure, as best I can, that you do not interfere. I would regret the lives lost, but I would regret my own people going hungry more. Besides, as much as I know logically that humans and the Dune People need to work together, humans do taste good." He gave a smile that was probably much less predatory than if he had been in his normal form.

He figured he had been long winded enough and stayed silent as he slowly chewed the still cooling meat of his meal, waiting for what this Solar would do. He had already been tested a lot, and if he managed to get enough food to feed a tribe of Dune People, Taredo would be more than impressed. He might actually have to rethink a lot about what preconceptions he had. If not, well, Taredo would make sure he didn't kill his erstwhile mate.

 

[Armphid]

"I. Misunderstand. Nothing. About. This." The words were measured and sure, each one snapping out of the Exalt's teeth as though his tongue were a cracking whip. "The Guild's practice is abhorrent. That does not excuse your people's actions. Nor does their point of view. Your argument is hollow, and you know this in your heart." He spread his hands, "If one of your people kills another for a possession, is it all right because he did not think the victim his equal? Does that make it anything less than murder?"

Radiant Kissing Son shook his head, "I will not let them take anyone." Then he took a breath, "You chide me, yet your own speech is heavy with an ethnocentric attitude. Your test is as set against me as it can be, but I will meet it." He looked at the shape shifter with determined eyes. "I have met you with courtesy, and mean to continue to do so. But this is not a game to me, Sunscorner. Nor are the lives of those slaves, or of your people. With all these tests and changing rules, I wonder, is it the same with you? Which of us is it that is prideful?"

He bowed then, "I will go and seek to complete this latest test. I would apologize for any offense my words give, but that would be a lie, for I mean each one. Yet I regret if this has ended any possibility of alliance between us, for that would be a great loss. By your leave, then."

The pale skinned northerner turned to the side, clambering up to the crest of the dune in whose shadow he had been resting. The lay of the land was key here. He knew far little of the desert than of his own northern lands, but he was a skilled hunter. And in this hunt, he must succeed. Part of his mind whispered to him, wondering if sacrificing a few unfortunates for the greater good was not wisdom.

Radiant Kissing Son grimaced. What a terrible thought that was. And so he set out, a predator in a land not his own.

 

[Misanthropiclove]

There was a light sting to the words received. Taredo watched Radiant Kissing Son walk off, the Lunar no longer tensed for what he thought might have been a very terse encounter. He found his hunger had waned and laid the beast he had been feasting on down as a part of the first amount to be offered to his tribe. It might not help Radiant Kissing Son too much, but Taredo felt compelled to help out this man.

He took wing once more, the cool breeze of the night air ruffling the feathers of a great desert owl. Taredo knew that Radiant Kissing Son had yet to see this form, so it was more than enough to watch him surreptitiously from the sky. As much as he wished too, he couldn't abandon the Solar.

Above the vast expanse of sand Luna looked on with a full face. The light of the complete moon made the sand almost dance, the death dealing heat quenched by the embrace of the Silver Lady. It would be cold enough that the Northern borne Solar would probably almost feel at home.

Taredo watched how Radiant Kissing Son tracked, a dissonant feeling of superiority raging whenever he saw the man make a mistake. Yet, he realized that for someone who had never even been to the South before, this man was better than he should be. He was more than impressive, even with simple mistakes.

Taredo interfered only once: When Radiant Kissing Son got too near a cactus snake and its home, the owl dove down to the ground, screeching loudly and grasped the venomous beast with his talons, yanking the now dead creature into the air. It was a common mistake, and a common tactic of the snake. The creature burrowed into cacti and waited for any prey up to the size of a large camel or even baby yeddim to come by and struck. It's poison liquefied the innards and the snake could manage the now malleable meal at it's leisure. Taredo scoffed as he dropped the snake to the desert floor after flying away. He told himself that if anyone was going to kill the nascent Solar, it would be him.

Taredo was more than pleased with Radiant Kissing Son's attitude. He left his mate after the incident with the snake, flying off to meditate under the light of Luna. He sought a new form, one that would give him an edge in battle, against the Guild or Radiant Kissing Son. Something new. Something fierce. His eyes opened as he felt the tug. Yes, he would be ready the next day.

 

[Armphid]

He watched the owl sail away without comment. Hardly a random act. It seemed that Sunscorner cared more about the outcome of this than he/she/it let on. After a moment, the young Exalt walked over to where the snake had nested, carefully edging in, checking warily. "Ah. The lidless box of golden treasure." He drew several eggs from the cactus, slipping them into a sling formed from his shirt. With the snake, assuming he could find the corpse, it wasn't a bad start.

But he had a long way to go. A whole tribe to feed; a tribe whose numbers he had no knowledge of. He also didn't know how much time he had to work with. Tomorrow was a very vague term.

He retrieved the cactus snake's corpse, taking care to use his belt knife to remove the head and the dangerous venom sacs. The night proved kind, or his searching more able than he anticipated, and by dawn he had managed to catch a pair of scrub hares to add to his menu. It was good fortune in the desert, and would last him alone for many days. But it was not enough.

As the sun began to come over the horizon, it's light kissed his pale flesh and an idea sprang up in his mind. There was one kind of animal that was easier to trap in the desert. Though any of them would hardly be food animals...he had little choice. He knelt covering the eggs, the hares, and the snake with sand. Sunscorner's scent should keep all but the most depserate scavengers and predators away. Then he picked up the mauled and half eaten carcass the Lunar had left behind. After he was a few hundred feet from the campsite, he began to drag it behind him.

So it was as the sun rose and began to beat down that Radiant Kissing Son lay on the baking sands, feebly moving. The carcass was by his side, the stink of it's meat and blood in the blazing sun rank and fetid. The perfect lure. He heard sand shift slightly, one of his eyes cracking open. Creeping ever closer was a pack of jackals, scavengers and cleaners of the desert. Good. He really didn't want to try buzzard, his other option.

Radiant Kissing Son lay still. The large canines began to feed on the carcass, tearing it apart, but he did not move. Then they circled him, growling, sniffing, but he did not move. They darted in close and then away, testing, but he did not move. One crept up close and sniffed, licked his arm, then bit. The powerful teeth barely marked the skin, and still he did not move. The creatures moved in, convinced at last.

In an explosion of blows, sand, yelps, and flaring Essence, he moved. The jackals flew up into the air, a snap kick knocking one out of its arc as it broke the animal's neck. The rest landed, shaking themselves. Radiant Kissing Son wasted no time, appearing before one just as it rose to its feet. His fist of iron crushed its skull, the thing flopping down into the sand. He felt a third darting at his calves from behind, teeth intent to hamstring this resistant meal. Radiant Kissing Son leaped up, letting the jackal rush under him. His hands came down on either side of its neck as it did so, a tearing crack answering the strikes. A fourth leaped, snarling. He turned on his heel and ducked beneath it, grabbing its backlegs and swinging the hunter down onto it's back in the sand, his heel crushing its throat a moment later.

He relaxed, the rest of the pack had fled, scurrying away over the dunes howling out their fear. Radiant Kissing Son nodded with satisfaction. Four was acceptable, he'd wanted five, but this would have to do. On his forehead burned a solid disk of golden energy, the mark of his Caste. He spread his arms out, his face turning up to the sun, "For your bounty, I thank you. May it be enough."

His knife sung free of it's scabbard as he knelt beside the bodies. Dress and skin. It would take time, but even if it had not, he had the sense that his hunt was at an end. What he had would either be enough or it would not. Now he could only prepare for whatever end came of this.

 

[Misanthropiclove]

Taredo came during the sun lit time this day, landing and taking the form of his Southern woman once more, "I see. This seems like it should be fit for my tribe. I am not sure about the slaves you wish me to help you free though, Sun Child." He touched the large dogs and shrugged, "Unless they would be okay with the odds and ends of these animals. Of course, we could always just take down one of the animals that leads the caravans."

He walked over and placed a hand on Radiant Kissing Son's shoulder and bowed his head, "You have passed my tests, Sun Child. You have my might for you when you wish to free these slaves today. We shall be victorious." He shimmered lightly, finally taking his true form. He stood a good six feet and four inches tall and his skin was white as chalk or the very face of the moon. His hair reached down to his shoulders in most places and carried a few black feathers braided into the white strands. His arms and legs were covered in silver tattoos that still managed to stand out on the parchment-like skin and seemed to still look like they would be movable if you just traced a finger across them. The only oddity on him was his eyes, both of them completely sapphire blue as if his eyes had been replaced with the gems themselves.

"Here, let me seal the pact with you." It wasn't a request, or an offer. Taredo brought Radiant Kissing Son close and kissed him hard, plunging his tongue into the other's mouth and dragged out the tongue of his Solar Mate. With a quick bite Taredo pierced both skins and mixed their blood together with the kiss. There was a small hint that Taredo enjoyed this more than just a pact sealing, yet he still fiercely held Radiant Kissing Son close. There was also no way he would admit that this was anything more than an agreement between two Chosen, not even to himself.

As the kiss ended Taredo licked off a few traces of blood from Radiant Kissing Son's mouth as he shifted back into the female form to escape the burning rays of the Unconquered Sun. "There we go. You have my blood mixed in you, I have yours with me. We are now bonded. You SHOULD be safe in my tribe, but I would stick close to me just in case."

He gave a light smirk and sat down amongst the carcasses, pulling out a bone knife as he slit the stomach of one of the canids and began to gut it, placing all the meat in a position for it to cook in the sun. "I think this will be something of a treat for my tribesmen. Since I got here early enough I should be able have some of this meat cook. That may also work for some of the slaves. I doubt they are used to, or even capable, of eating raw meat."

It seemed that with all these "tests" passed that Taredo wasn't nearly as much of a bastard as he had passed himself off as. He was cleaning and scouring the corpses for useful materials in ways that would most likely seem similar to the Northern Solar. "Tell me when they start to come. I'll work these hides into something for the new people to wear. Otherwise I fear the slave clothing will fall apart and leave them open to the elements. Tch, so weak in some ways."

Taredo would busy himself with the work, cleaning out certain parts of the animals and scraping every last bit of fat and tissue from the skins as he got them ready. After he placed them out to dry he started going for the smaller animals, removing unusable bones yet keeping the venom glands of the snake. The entire little ritual would be at least informative, if not necessary if Radiant Kissing Son were to live with these people. It was something no human had ever been privy to seeing before...and surviving at least.