Remnants of the Earth
TEINAR => Teinar => Topic started by: Jenny on June 17, 2012, 08:54:02 am
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It hadn't been easy to get here.
Which was fine- After all, Tabea hadn't expected it to be easy. She hadn't been to Teinar in eleven years, since her family had orchestrated her escape in hopes of earning her a better life, and that meant that her plan to go back was not only selfish and ridiculous, it was risky and damn near impossible. People didn't travel freely between Teinar and Aedolis- it just wasn't plausible. Earth's nations were separated sharply by an undrawn and unpatrolled boundary which was invisible but nonetheless firm and understood by all people.
It was dangerous, too. There were those who patrolled the outskirts of Haviah and Aedolis, and likewise for Teinar, but none between and no chartered path to follow. The only advantages she had, which were unique just as her escape from Teinar and her past, were that her brother had been a soldier for both nations, and she had been a soldier of Haviah's once. She had enough knowledge and military experience that she'd been capable of piecing together and mapping out a plan, a route. Luckily, Aedolis and Teinar were close to one another--After all, the land surrounding Teinar was Haviah's personal dumping ground, because Aedolis's respect for Teinar as a nation was nonexistent.
Using what she knew, Tabea strapped up in her old Haviah soldier uniform and began on her journey. It was a miracle that she wasn't caught passing through border security, but no one bothered to follow customs rules or security measures when it came to a soldier with a legitimate ID, and though it was expired, the picture was her's, and they let her pass after a promise that she would renew her ID. (Would they let her back in Haviah, she wondered, and would her higher-ups analyze the list of scanned IDs of soldiers leaving Aedolis and realize she was a retired soldier breaking the law? Would she ever come home?)
Between Aedolis and Teinar, she switched into another disguise of her's- Her brother's Teinar soldier uniform from eleven years ago, when they'd escaped. From there, it was a game of luck and patience. She hid out in the fields surrounding the entrance to Teinar's underground capital for a full day, waiting for a group of above-ground patrol soldiers large enough that she could join in at random and go unnoticed.
The moment came, and though it took longer than she anticipated, Tabea was thankful it had happened at all. They could have gotten rid of above-ground patrol, but luckily, the force was still in place. Tabea joined the group during battle with a beast, when they were most distracted and unlikely to realize her, then followed the squad leader back to the patrol base underground, planning to make her escape into the city from there.
Though... There had been one hitch in the plan, and that was the escaping. As she attempted to sneak out of the facilities, the patrol leader came to her with two other soldiers, bearing words which would surely mean trouble- "Lieutenant Shaw told me he's never heard of a Noelle Vox on the squad..."
And Tabea knew there was only one option left- running. She ran like hell, as long as she could, until she was hardly sure where she was at all, but she was sure that there was no one on her tail.
Bent over at the waist with her hands braced on her thighs, she struggled to catch her breath and clear her mind as she stared at the ground. She was still donning the patrol guard get-up, which would no doubt get attention.. But the soldier uniform was no worse than what she had under: sleek, fashionable clothing from Haviah. And for now, the attention was important. Conversing with strangers, though dangerous, was important to her entire purpose: she was here to find her family, and she would need the help of others to do so.
There was danger in doing so, but she had to. She would use her alias and hope that no one would recognize her as who she truly was. Her name (and her brother's) had probably been dragged through the dirt, becoming one of shame and mild infamy now- The girl that left Teinar and her family. What with the value of loyalty in Teinar, Tabea knew she would be welcomed by no one but her family. But she had to know. The wondering would kill her if she didn't address it.
With that thought, Tabea felt her confidence return to her. She took one last heaving breath before straightening up and looking around carefully. She'd spent fifteen years in Teinar, but she had never seen this place before. It was neither residential nor communal, and it seemed like a brand new section of the city altogether- an expanded area, and no doubt the workers she saw were helping the effort, or perhaps mining for new materials. Tabea was not sure if this was the right place for her purposes, but she'd have to find out.
-
Theo sat in one of many watering holes nearby, nursing a drink - a clear glass of water with the barest drips of juice from some sour fruit cultivated underground. The vines were curled tastefully around chandeliers overhead, but he was not here to be classy. The thickness of the walls, the muted conversation, were a welcome break from the din outside, the clashing and clanking of old, mechanical instruments, and that damned racing sport.
Unlike most of the residents here, his stays in his home were sporadic. He frequently disappeared for months at a time, joining mining crews that hired people like him. The work was seasonal, depending on the orbits of nearby comets and meteors that occasionally brought them close to Earth. When that happened, mining recruiters would usually descend on Teinar, snatching up the few would did not mind braving cruel outer space for a few weeks of work and exorbitantly good pay. There wasn't too much difference between working on a comet and ascending the tunnels that made up Teinar. For Theo, the silence in the vacuum of space muffled the roars of his pneumatic drill as he poked holes into the surface of a giant ball of space-ice, to let the mining machines gorge themselves on the precious minerals and metals that lay below.
He often took his pay as a small percentage of materials mined. He was a bit of a special case; multiple times he had blacked out, the last image being of his intestines floating out of a small hole in his suit, the explosive decompression poking a neat hole in his abdomen when a small piece of debris punctured his suit. The companies he worked with usually begrudgingly honoured his request. Every time he woke up in the infirmary, and continued his work. The exotic materials, stashed within the disgusting dirt hole he called him, were an invaluable bartering chip in the underground city of Teinar.
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Tabea scanned the area carefully but quickly, not wanting to waste time standing around and looking suspicious. There were a few options available to her: she could enter the large mining site and speak to one of the many workers, or she could choose to go back, in the direction of the base (unlikely), or forward down the tunnel, which would most likely lead to a more communal area. Then she noticed it- a small path nearby, seemingly opening into a watering hole. There was only so much time to make a decision, and no way of knowing which would be most fruitful, so Tabea left it to chance and headed down the path to the watering hole. If she were lucky, there would be a handful of workers on break to speak to.
As it turned out, she was not lucky. There was but one worker (Or at least, she assumed he was a worker) sitting idly with a glass of water. She felt distinctly like she was intruding, but it would be too strange to enter only to leave. Tabea straightened up, trying to look the part that her uniform suggested. A soldier. But she was still reluctant to speak or move. The worker seemed...unlike the others, primarily due to the fact that he was so overdressed for Teinar's heat. And also because he was alone, and very quiet. In fact, it was silent as death in the watering hole, a sharp silence that suited its elegant, almost cold appearance.
Tabea began to approach him, stopping at a fair distance. "Excuse me. Can I ask you a few questions?" The same cold, clinical voice she used as a doctor. Good. She hoped this guy couldn't somehow sense how nervous she is.
-
Click.
Theo winced. His eyes drifted over ..
Clack The sound of the shoes on the ground was almost deafening, after the silence of the place. He had been sitting at a small circular table, both of his arms resting on the top, pushing his khaki cloak away from his chest, like a curtain, to reveal the skin-tight sand suit underneath. One hand fluidly withdrew, the curtains of the cloak closing, only his arm, the one holding the glass of water, sticking out. Rhythmic, switching and popping noises, quiet, flowed from the interior of the cloak.
His eyes wandered over her, almost greedily. They traced the outline of her neck, shoulders, waist ..
He could smell her sweat. It was somewhat sharp, surprisingly acrid. This female was not exactly in a rested state of mind.
The hand that was clutching the glass of water raised itself and pulled the cloak down from his face, which he had instinctively raised upon the entrance of another patron. His face, rough and sandblasted, was slightly paler than the stripe of tan around his eyes; a rather unfortunate fashion choice given his usual habit of cover his nose and mouth, but not his eyes, in the desert world above. Although his mouth was set in a bit of a grimace, his silence and lack of rejection telegraphed his intention to answer her questions.. if they were the right ones.
-
Tabea watched the man cautiously, surprise settling in beside her slight nervousness. Shouldn't he do something more than stare, like answer her-- be nervous, perhaps, to be addressed by a soldier? Soldiers only entered the city in garb when there was a problem, a monster outbreak or something on par with it that required an organized and armed effort. She tensed. Maybe she had been too casual, not stern enough. But she didn't want to wield a sword of false authority too heavy-handedly, lest she make too strong an impression. Then she wouldn't last long. People would talk, and real soldiers would find her.
"Senior Officer Vox, I'm a patrol soldier. I-" she paused. No, not she. The military. "We're looking for someone. They're not in trouble, so if you know them personally, don't be alarmed. Fiona Grey." Her mother. Though she doubted this man would know her, he didn't seem the socializing type. But maybe he'd heard of her. When she was younger, her mother ran a clinic. She was known of, at least by people who'd been injured often. Suddenly it struck her as it hadn't yet- What if she was dead? Her father? "Have you heard of her or seen her?"
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"Officer Voxxxx." Theo dragged out the last syllable, his lips pulled back, teeth gritted as he enunciated the 'x'.
He swirled the water, took a sip, and placed it delicately back on the table, in the same motion standing up and moving to position the piece of furniture between him and the female.
"There have been no subterranean creature invasions lately." His words hung in the air, an implied accusation. Both of his hands had fallen inside his cloak, and it hung loosely around his body. It obscured any fighting stance, if any, he was in, and gave no hint of any concealed weapons of the sort. More than anything, it simply conveyed distrust. It was somewhat ironic of him to do so, and he felt like it was his duty to tell her what he knew: he did not feel like he had the authority, as somewhat of an outsider himself, to withhold information from her.
-
Tabea kept her expression controlled and calm even as the other man reacted so strangely to her, repeating her name before swiftly standing and moving away. For a moment she wondered if he was going to attempt an escape. His posture seemed to imply it. Was he some kind of criminal who thought she was trying to trick him before arresting him? God, this was getting more complicated than she'd anticipated. And to top it off, if she let him run away without pursuit, she would blow her cover. She'd just have to play this carefully, pretending to be unfazed but on guard, like a soldier.
His words only made him seem more suspicious. Of her. Tabea frowned, lips in a tight line. "That's right," she agreed. "But we need Grey's expertise in a certain situation." She took a few steps closer to him, maintaining a stern expression that hopefully might make an impression.
-
Her .. advances pushed him back in turn, him making sure to keep a comfortable distance between the two. Unfortunately, there was only a small distance he could back up until he was against the wall. He glared, pensive, intense, his eyes boring into hers as he played with the children's toy in his cloak. They were two magnetic spheres with their domains randomly dispersed on the surface. When brought together, they would spin wildly and attempt to fly off in any direction possible. The goal was to keep them together, and it took a fair amount of reflexes and intuition to do so.
It was an admirable distraction from the way her lips parted when she spoke, the sheen of saliva that remained on the --
"I think you're lying." Perhaps a touch too aggressive, and he almost barked out his accusation. The way Teinar worked, organizations, relationships, and authority were organic, with little formal structure. There was little reason to believe the words of someone who tried to use authority to ask for his obedience.
"But I'll take you there anyways." It was not in his nature to inquire closely about other people.
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Tabea's composure finally snapped when, following his backing up into the wall, the man sharply accused her of lying. Her lips parted in surprise, eyebrows arched, before drawing together in an expression of slight anger, her mouth snapping shut. There was no right way to play this man.. But then maybe that's where the trick was. Maybe if she stopped with the games... Tabea was determined to get what she wanted, but not stubborn. She would not cling foolishly to her idea of pretending to be a soldier if it would only make things more difficult and lead her astray from her goal.
Though the man said he would take her regardless, Tabea sighed, already defeated. If this man was a criminal he'd respect her more as one. If not, well, he didn't seem the type to care. "I did lie." she admitted, stepping back as she tore off her soldier headpiece and letting her hair down. "But I need to find her," Tabea said sharply, though relieved that she no longer had to deceive. "It is important."
-
He cast his glance sharply down to the floor to avoid looking at her figure, and his aggressive posture slightly slumped, muted as the situation diffused itself. He pulled at his right side burn, rubbing the long, bunched together strand of hair through his fingers before briskly striding to the exit. He seemed to appreciate this more direct method, and the clanking noises ceased to emanate from underneath his cloak.
"Not from around here?" It was almost a rhetorical question, seeing as she had acted just like someone from Aedolis; lording over others with rank. As he exited his sanctuary, he automatically stuffed plugs into his ears to mute the general noises of life that echoed in the tunnels. It was warmer in the tunnels, and he was forced to tie his cloak back, to allow the stale breeze to wash over his sand-suit. It was lucky for him, that the suit absorbed his perspiration and prevented the pheromones from diffusing into the air.
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Giving up the disguise seemed to ease the situation, as the man relaxed slightly in posture. He didn't even question why she had lied, just asked her if she was from around the area. Tabea frowned, holding the headpiece close to her side as she followed the man. "Yes, and... No," she answered vaguely, not desiring to explain much further than that. If he was really familiar with the lesser stories and rumors of Teinar, then that answer had potential to give her away altogether. Did it matter anyway? There was little left to protect, though, and this would need to stay hidden.
"So you know where she is?" Tabea asked, falling into step beside the man.
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"I knew where she was."
He didn't bother to explain that. Given the nature of his work, he paradoxically spent less time at home than in the great spaceports of Aedolis or some forsaken meteor hurtling past Earth. Although he was aware of where their residence was, he knew nothing about their profession. In fact, they did not seem very high key, nor particularly well known, which was what had set him off in the first place. He continued walking along the path in his memory.
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Tabea quirked a brow at the man's strange reply, but accepted it nonetheless. "Very well," she replied, remaining at his side as they walked through the tunnels of Teinar. "My real name is Tabea, by the way," she offered, picking up on the fact that this man didn't seem to know much about who he was looking for or what her answer had meant. He probably hadn't heard the story of her- the girl who had escaped from Teinar to live in Haviah. The people of Teinar typically hated Aedolians. She didn't blame them. "You don't have to give me your's, if you don't want to. But thank you for showing me the way. It has been a long time..." She looked around pensively, taking in the sights which were familiar and yet strangely foreign. It seemed like much had changed, but she knew that the only difference was her vision of the place. It was no longer exciting and fun, it no longer felt like home. It was dismal and almost barbaric. Thinking that, Tabea realized how much she had changed.
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"The people here speak of community and trust, but people often come and go."
Theo arrived at the place where he last remembered the Greys residing. He glanced up at the small homestead, carved into the side of the tunnel. It was a section of the city that had been near the subterranean uprisings. Claw marks, bullet holes, and scratches from spears and daggers adorned the walls and the door of the dwelling, and continued on far into the deeper portions of the tunnel, where the sheer depth seemed to mute the bioluminescence of the vines. Teinar was a haunt for survivors and not much else.
He would have answered her with his name, but the state of the house made him forget. Somberly, he stepped widely around her (upwind of the draft, to avoid the maddening sweetness of her perspiration), and gestured for her to enter, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms.
-
Tabea followed the man quietly as he led them further down the tunnel, not bothering to reply. His words had hit a little too close to home. Tabea hadn't wanted to leave, but her family and Sigur had forced her to go. Still, she felt like a traitor. Did that make her parents traitors as well? For wanting a better life for her? She frowned without meaning to, eyes downcast as they walked. She still had too many unaddressed feelings about her past. Perhaps she had come here too much on a whim. Perhaps it would have been better if she'd stayed in Haviah and come to terms with her thoughts independently rather than chasing the answer.
Finally they arrived- It was her childhood home, but different, worse. The claw marks, the superficial markings from weapons... She saw it for what it was now. Tabea stared intently, her heart aching painfully as she moved quickly towards the entrance, feeling as though her heart were being tugged fiercely. She pushed the door open and, as she had feared, the place was empty. Barren. The furniture had remained in place but now covered with a film of dust. There was no sign of life. Tabea picked up a frame which sat abandoned on the stand closest to the door. It was her and Sigur the year they'd left. The pain in her heart intensified, her stomach dropped. They were dead, weren't they? Had been dead.
Tabea hurried out, unable to bear facing this reality, hating her arrogant decision to come to Teinar. Seeing the man again, she stopped herself from running and instead slid to a crouch, holding the picture tightly in her hands. "They're dead. They must be. When was the last time you--" she looked up at him, wishing she wasn't showing so much vulnerability right now but unable to help it.
-
Theo raised one leg to place his foot against the wall. He glanced down the corridor.
"Things come up often, but we usually push them back without deaths. It may not be what you think." Even to him, the words sounded a bit hollow and shallow, lacking in comfort or consolation.
"I was last here about three months ago."
-
Though his words lacked warmth and though they were not comforting, they served their purpose. Tabea realized that she was jumping to conclusions. There was a chance they were still alive, and her emotions had gotten the best of her for a moment. She pocketed the picture and stood straight, facing the man. "You're right.." she folded her arms across her chest. "Sorry, I feel like I'm dragging you into something that has nothing to do with you, but.. There's no point in keeping it quiet, I've all but given myself away as is. I'm looking for my parents."
-
"I figured." That much was obvious from the beginning, if she was not Officer Vox looking for Mrs. Grey.
"I don't have much to do until the next mining pass occurs." That was the truth. These days it seemed his only purpose for existing was to go and dig up precious ores frozen into the great icy comets as they blazed past earth. His time back in Teinar was almost filled with complete boredom, and mental torture as he resisted the one thing that this entire society, in fact this entire world, had to come to embrace: casual sex.
He took his foot off the wall and walked up to the door, pulling down the cloak from his nose to take a long, measured sniff of the area. The dust started a sneezing fit, but he thought there was a lingering something in the air ..
-
Tabea was surprised that the man figured her out so effortlessly, and not just that, but implied that he was willing to help her. She frowned at him, not unkindly but out of the forcefulness of her own mannerisms, because she felt that she was imposing greatly. Yet, she needed someone to help her and guide her. She would be blind on her own.
That being said Tabea was ready to speak but lost her train of thought when the man sniffed the air and sneezed. Seeing him do this, Tabea had a sudden rush of curiosity, wanting to know more about this man. It was most likely a defense mechanism- he knew more about her than vice versa. "You're not human?" she questioned, approaching him.
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After the bout of sneezing, Theo snorted, preparing himself for another breath, but the confounding sweetness prevented him from otherwise getting another one. The endless dodging was becoming tiresome, as well. He stifled a sigh as he pulled the cloak back up over his face, his hands once again reaching for the pair of magnetic balls inside his cloak.
"I don't know much about the area, but maybe I can hel -- ghk!" He was turning and speaking at the same time, and was surprised by her proximity and question.
"A-am I not human??" His nervousness was offset by his curiosity. It was a peculiar question to ask of him. When he first took up residence here, he was not questioned for his appearance, and based on his observations, his physical form was rather in line with the majority of Teinar's residents.
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Tabea almost smiled when she realized she'd startled him, but figured she should play it safe and not laugh at the first person willing to help her, though her amusement was more childish than cruel. And there were more pressing matters at hand- she may have offended him. "Ah!" she started, frowning again. "Sorry I didn't mean... Just, there are a lot of nonhumans where I'm from and you seemed.." she shrugged. There was something different about him, something superhuman, her intuition was asserting. And when had her intuition ever failed her?
She had to know for sure, and the only way she could know was by touch. She reached out and placed her hand on his shoulder. Ah, so he was human. But there was more.. a virus? Unlike one she had ever sensed. Not an illness, per se... "You are... human," Tabea added.
-
Theo stiffened upon being touched, and there was a crack underneath the robe. His hands had ground the two magnetic balls to shards, and pieces of metal and circuit fell to the ground from underneath his cloak. His hands were also bleeding, but the very exposure of blood to air was already causing it to clot, and in a few minutes there would be no cut whatsoever. Thus, no blood accompanied the metal pieces as they fell to the floor.
"Yes. I suppose I am human." He spoke through gritted teeth, his body language indicating that perhaps she should take her hand off his shoulder. His lips were drawn back in a predatory leer, but this was hidden beneath the collar of his cloak that obscured his face. His nostrils dilated, sniffing, searching for the source of sweetness .. but he did not move an inch from his spot, rooted there by will.
-
The cracking sound surprised Tabea but she didn't react or even realize what it was. She was too busy focusing on Theo's seemingly angered expression. Since she had her hand on him, she could feel that his muscles tightened and his posture changed, tensing as soon as she touched him. She could even sense his facial muscles enough to comprehend the expression he made- the leer.. But she also felt him resisting. Resisting what? It all came to her in one jumbled blur, like there was too much information to sort through in terms of his virus, his body, and she didn't have the time to figure it out, nor was she welcome to.
Tabea dropped her hand at long last, frowning as she moved backwards. She had overstepped her boundaries-- too used to people wanting her to use her magic because she was a head doctor for the military in Aedolis. "Sorry," she managed before blurting out- "Are you ill?" Shit. Tabea knew she shouldn't have said that, but... It was the doctor side of her that felt the need to impose. "I'm.. a doctor, maybe there is something I can do in return for your help.."
-
"I don't think I'm sick." Theo's voice was quiet, strained from the exertion.
He brushed a single bead of sweat that had run down the side of his face, and instead of wiping it on his clothes, brought it to his lips. It was a well practice gesture, done from habit. He pulled his cloak higher, to hide the sheen of perspiration. The wind blew down the tunnel, past Tabea first, washing away his scent down the halls and into the dark beyond.
-
"Okay," Tabea said, quieting at last and casting her gaze downwards as a mixture of guilt and regret swept over her. She shouldn't have acted the way she did, in fact she was sure she was only making things worse by interfering in such a way and using her power when it was not welcome and when he didn't even know she was doing it. It was not her place, though in all honesty, Tabea was just trying to help.
She looked up again as a wind blew down the tunnel, focusing her eyes on the man and suddenly feeling a physical longing for him. The feeling surprised her and made her, in a way, uncomfortable. It was so sudden. Tabea said nothing, just looked at him almost entranced.
-
Although clarifying the issue did not come to him, Theo had no cause to feel offended, nor did he feel that his space was violated. Her touch on his shoulder, the first in a long while, had cause a simultaneous rush of feelings, an outlet and yet a source of frustration at the same time. He could still feel the way her fingers, all four of them, rested on his shoulder.
In any case, his body language did not send out resentment. He had long become accustomed to the symbiotic relationship with the virus, to the point where it was hard to remember whether or not he had always been like this. However, his resistances to the primal urges were always a stark reminder of the reality of the situation.
He turned away from her to face the door. "Your parents .. they may have only recently left." A scent, similar to the girl who stood before him, faintly lingered on the furniture, mixed with the dust of age. He heaved a sigh, uncharacteristicall y. Theo was no detective; he had no idea what to do next.
-
The physical urge dissipated steadily, fading away until she was unsure that it had ever been there. It made Tabea confused and uncertain, two emotions which rarely befell her. She shrugged them off as the man turned away and began addressing the subject of her parents again. She clung to the subject immediately, almost desperately, relieved to hear that her parents might not be dead but only left their home. And recently, at that. There was a good chance they were alive.
"I don't know where they would have gone," Tabea admitted, sighing as well. "My mother used to own a clinic. I don't know what's happen since those days, though. It's been eleven years..." She considered it for a moment before taking a seat on an old chair nearby. "All this way from Haviah and I'm not even sure for what.."
-
Theo was not suited for consoling or giving life advice. He sensed that the end of his usefulness had come, and the only thing he could do was stand in front of the door to the dwelling, alternating between looking fixedly into its depths or sneaking glances at his companion's crestfallen face.
"..."
He sat down as well, a little heavily, dislodging dust from the sofa nearby. It was true that there was a bit of dust on the surroundings, but it did not seem to be too thick or old.
"Perhaps .."
"Perhaps you can ask around? Do you remember anyone who you could go to?"
-
Tabea hadn't any expectations for the man, certainly not any consolation, though perhaps a suggestion. Mostly, she was speaking out loud, and for whatever reason she felt she could trust this man. It wasn't a matter of thinking him to be kind and trustworthy, more of an assertion that the man was indifferent in some sort of superior manner that was not cruel but just was. He hadn't shown any bias either to help her or harm her, just.. Reacted. That seemed to suit Tabea fairly well.
"I do, but..." Tabea leaned back in the seat and looked up at the ceiling pensively. "I don't believe they'd welcome me readily. I left Teinar, I betrayed my community in doing so," she said in a matter-of-fact tone, hardly begging sympathy. "If they recognized me.. it could be dangerous."
-
So that was why. Theo crossed his legs and also turned his gaze to the ceiling. Actually, he had wanted to ask about her rather curious origins - why did she hail from Haviah, so far away, and how did she even manage to get here? A small smile floating underneath his cloak; something of a prodigal daughter, perhaps?
"In my time here," he grunted as he stood up and brushed the dust off his clothes, "I've noticed .. that the people of Teinar, although they are a 'community' (and here he said the word with a hint of skepticism) are fickle creatures." His gaze penetrated the wall of the adobe and went far beyond. "That's how the desert is."
A blink dispelled the whimsical, nostalgic expression on his face.
"Let's go ask someone." He had already switched from 'you' to 'us'. Theo pulled the collar of his cloak down, exposing a white-toothed grin with very sharp canine teeth. At that moment he seemed to forget his troubles, almost seeming thuggish. It seemed that he was looking forward to the potential of conflict. Teinar people were rough, and scraps were common.
-
Tabea looked over once more as the man began speaking, the most he had spoken since she'd met him. His words were somewhat surprising. The last time she had been here, she had been a mere child and she'd understood little about the community beyond what she could see, beyond how people treated her in particular. But attempting to look back on her past, she felt that the man's words were not inaccurate. The community was not really all it seemed, though it was at the center of their belief system and they clung to it, perhaps to find comfort.
Since he'd been so insightful, Tabea didn't anticipate it when the man lowered his cloak and grinned at her. She smiled back, realizing his use of the plural first which meant he would be sticking around. Though, she was not as excited for conflict as the man, but it wouldn't be a problem. She had been a soldier for years before becoming a doctor. "Alright. That seems to be the only option left," she agreed, standing and leading the way outside.
-
Theo also found his outburst to be uncharacteristicall y warm. Normally he was inclined to leave others alone, and if they did the same for him it was more than enough for his quiet existence. As he followed her outside, he wondered: why was he feeling so inclined? The usual myriad of excuses popped up in his head: bored, nothing to do, might as well, looks like a lost kitten ..
Ah .. the stale air in Teinar had all but washed away whatever artificial scent that was in her hair soap. The natural sweetness left behind pulled him, made his legs fall into step behind hers, following the rhythm of her steps. His bluster and grin waned, but despite it all, he still followed her.
"Do you remember anyone you could ask?"
-
At the man's question, Tabea quietly reflected on her earlier years in Teinar. Back then, she'd had many friends and acquaintances. She had known every resident of her neighborhood, if not through her parents' relations then through her own or through her brother. The stipulations, though, were what made the search difficult. She needed someone who would not reject her as a traitor but be willing to help, and who would also have kept in touch with her family enough to know where they were. It was a tricky situation, and she wasn't sure if she could think of anyone who met every circumstance.
Another quiet moment passed before she stopped in her tracks. "Oh!" she said suddenly, as the perfect candidate came to mind. "I know," Tabea started, spinning about to face the man, "My brother.. His best friend, a good family friend of our's, he would know. And he used to live in the slopes." The Slopes was a neighborhood in a lower part of the caverns- it was the slums, for lack of a better word. She hadn't been there in many years, but her family had always told her to be wary when she visited. Tabea wondered if it had grown worse over the past eleven years, or been erradicated.
-
Back to being silent, Theo split off from following her at a fork in the tunnel, starting down the path before stopping to put his chin on his shoulder, glancing back at her. It was a summons to follow. The vines that curled around the ceiling where less gardened along this route; they would sometimes snake to the bottom and back up, their usual place at the top of the tunnels lost from generations of neglect. However, the path was still clearly lit, and still seemed somewhat cheerful. Loud shouts and clangs intermittently sounded from below.
-
Since he hadn't spoken out, it took Tabea a moment to realize that her guide had ceased in following her and headed down the opposite side at the split in the tunnel. She turned quickly when she realized the lack of his presence and saw his slight gesture. Registering it as a beckoning of sorts, Tabea hurried up to him, having fallen behind a bit. "You should lead," she admitted almost bashfully, though the tone she adopted was more embarrassment and reluctance to admit her lack of knowledge in the area, rather than a shyness. "You know the area better, it seems.. Have you always lived here?"
-
Theo rolled a shrug into his walk as they moved down into the tunnel. It ever so gently sloped downwards, and at many points it would split off into large, yawning, brightly lit caverns, where the bustle and vigor of vagabond life made itself home. Bartering was a brisk trade, and food was often swapped for services or machines. A few catcalls accompanied his sightings, but they were more acknowledgement of his presence than anything else.
"Not long. A few of your years, maybe? I crash landed from ---"
He stopped suddenly in the tunnel. How foolish of him! Such a simple fact that he had held close to him, an answer he had routinely dodged on a 'dont ask, dont tell' policy, blurted out just for the sake of companionship. Female companionship. He turned around, his eyebrows arching downwards to reflect what must have been an embarrassed smile hidden underneath the cloak.
"That's just my stomach talking." Unusually loquacious. "Want to stop for food?"
-
Tabea listened quietly and carefully to the man's words, eager to hear what he had to say about himself. This man was almost a complete mystery to her, and just as it seemed that she would have some information to grasp onto (And as a doctor, she always wanted information at her fingertips, needed it), he cut himself off and stopped walking. She stopped as well, almost mirroring his actions though she tilted her head to the side and shot a curious, questioning expression his way. She was not sure why he had cut himself off, but if the man had his secrets, she would not fault him for it. She hadn't been particularly honest at the start, trying to hide her own secrets, and she still had secrets left to protect. Everyone had secrets.
At the offer of food, Tabea nodded. "Sure, that's a good idea. We might even run into him on the way. If not, there will be plenty of people to ask. His name's Kale."
-
Theo moved down into one of the wide caverns, stuffing a pair of plugs into both his ears and nostrils as he did so. It was apparent why: as soon as one crossed the threshold into the space, they were assaulted with the loud signature of the vigor of life.
He approached a stall - they seemed familiar with him, and the vendor handed him a brown package, raw meat wrapped in butcher's paper. He had a long standing relationship with this fellow - the ultrasharp minerals he brought back allowed him to efficiently cut meat, and his profits had soared ever since their trading relationship was established.
"KALE?"
A few heads turned to look. He had misjudged his volume, since he seldom spoke, and his utterance of a single word was surprising enough for many. His tone was commanding, and deep. The vendor gave the single word some thought and pointed deeper into the cavern. Satisfied with this answer, Theo turned to face Tabea, gesturing to nearby stalls from which she could get cooked food.
-
Tabea trailed behind the man, whose actions quickly had her mind focusing once more on his peculiar habits and wondering about his story, who he was, what she had sensed when she'd touched him. His choice of food, which seemed to be raw meat, had her arching her brows in surprise- though nothing would have prepared her for his sudden bellowing of 'Kale'. She blinked and then cast her gaze down quickly as several people looked over, not wanting to risk being recognized by anyone, though somewhere mixed in with her nervousness and caution, she was amused at the sudden outburst from the man. She chuckled a bit, hiding it behind her hand as she followed him.
"Ah. That was.. Loud," she teased a bit, smiling as they approached food stalls. She went to the first stall she saw, and ordered a simple stew which she recalled loving as a child. After paying, she led the way to a nearby eating area. Tabea took her seat and put the bowl down. "At least we know where he is now."
-
"REAL BUSI-ness lays in bed alongside - crime down here." Theo sat down next to her and unwrapped the packet on the table - a fair sized cut of some sort of meat. Most of the time it came from one of the larger rodents that wandered out of the dark areas in the underground tunnels. Alongside it lay some freshly picked greens. He undid is cloak - the sand-skin suit underneath, and placed it, folded alongside him. His body was somewhat gaunt, but powerful, and the fingers were thin, wiry, scarred. Opening his mouth, he took a large bite out of the steak; his teeth slid cleanly through the meat, and he did not have to tear at it like predators normally would.
-
Tabea watched the man very carefully, forgetting her own food entirely as she watched him unwrap the raw meat and bite into it. It wasn't a matter of disgust or surprise. She had seen... Well, she had seen nonhuman beings whom she treated at her hospital having meals much the same way. She had treated those with canine teeth, and who could only eat raw meat. But they were not human. Or if they were, not entirely so. The doctorlike curiosity was getting the best of her, she realized quickly- she had hardly even listened to him. Tabea looked down, digging into her soup. She was much hungrier than she realized. On her trip to Teinar, she'd barely eaten what she packed, and she didn't anticipate she'd be having her next meal in the Slopes with a strange and mysterious man. Speaking of which. "Can I ask your name?"
-
Theo had nearly finished his first piece of meat, and popped the last bite into his mouth with relish. Contrary to what most predators did, he did in fact take his time chewing the meat. The blood was viscous and had a heady iron taste, and the fat melting in his mouth offered an interesting contrast to the gristle and chewy tendons that thickly penetrated the meat - this was no domesticated Urner, the fat beast that spent its life eating greens and hardly exercising.
He placed the second piece of meat down upon hearing her question and looked at her for a bit. Her outfit certainly left little to be desired. As with the hedonistic traditions of Aedolians, the clothing seemed to leave just the right amount to the imagination, even for a formal uniform.
"Theo."
He took a bite.
"Kynes."
Luckily, food distracted him from the other urging of the flesh.
-
As was quickly becoming habit, Tabea kept a focused and interested gaze on the man. She wanted to know more about him, and that wish wouldn't die easily, what with the focus of her life being medicine, science, and magic. Knowledge was important to her. Without it, she felt a bit off-kilter. And there were already more than enough factors at play in this moment to make her off-kilter without having a mysterious companion.
The name helped. A bit. It was good to know it, at least, Tabea thought before having a bit more of her soup. Nice to meet you seemed like a strange phrase for the moment, so she stayed quiet.
-
At length, Theo wolfed down the second piece. Eating the first had awakened some sort of appetite in him, so he spent less time savouring the flavour and dug into it instead, taking large bites and swallowing without chewing. It was the habit of a typical carnivorous predator, to eat as quickly as possible lest their portion be stolen by a nearby pack mate.
The meal finished, he turned his attention to a collection of crunchy, purple coloured tubers laying next to the meat. He snapped off a small piece with his teeth, pop!, and chewed it ruminatively. The pupils in his eyes, glassy and unfocused for most of the meal, sharply came into focus as he felt her gaze on him. Slowly, they drifted up, still in a food stupor, until they were at plane with hers, boring into eyes. There was nothing particular with the way he returned his stare, but it had the feeling of a sated predator, an animal who normally might have been a coiled steel spring, unpredictable and ready to kill at a whim. Now, it was simply a curious gaze, perhaps beckoning for questions or other after-meal indulgences.
He cupped his chin on one hand, his mouth turned down in his characteristic emotionless frown, the cloak still laying neatly folded behind him. Although at first impression his body appeared to push the sand-suit outwards, making it more skin tight than it was supposed to be, his musculature was surprisingly gaunt, like a body builder turned monk. His skin, if it could have been looked at, would be tanned and smooth, hairless but leathery. Most of that could be seen in his wiry fingers, the tendons sharply outlined, the knuckles scarred and a darker brown than the rest of his skin. It was unclear whether most of this was due to neglect or simply from the unkindness of space and space suits. What was clear was that his body had adapted to the environment; in a more temperate climate with better food, he could have easily filled out his frame. Yet his body seemed to know that now was not the time to be adding muscle aggressively, that in a desiccated, food-sparse environment, it was better to be lean and efficient.
The frown was somewhat lightened by a bulge in his cheek as he chewed the vegetable. His head bobbed up and down on his chin in time with his jaw.
-
As Theo continued to eat ravenously and enthusiastically, Tabea chose to keep her gaze down as she ate her food. The man's actions did nothing to repulse her, they had only sparked her curiosity as a doctor and scientist. Yet, she felt it would be rude to continue staring at him. She wondered how her mannerisms would be different, had she stayed in Teinar. She could feel Theo's gaze on her, and she was sure that he wouldn't consider staring to be 'rude'. But for about half of her life, Tabea had lived in Haviah and thus been conditioned by their own standards for good manners and such. Teinar had never had such a concept. People were free to act as they wished. That was a positive, she asserted, and yet she couldn't help but find Teinar barbaric after years in Haviah. It was a scary sentiment- Tabea hadn't anticipated to feel this way towards her home, and she could only imagine how her feelings would have changed towards her parents. She hoped not at all.
Her soup finished, Tabea pushed the bowl to the side slowly and turned her gaze upwards, watching as Theo ate the vegetables slowly. With his cloak off, she could focus on certain details of his appearance that gave her a better idea of his background and such. He had the skin of a worker, especially one of space. She'd seen many people from terraforming expeditions with such similar traits. He had the body structure of a worker too, though he seemed awkwardly lean. Poor? Starving? Words crossed her mind rapidly and she could barely compartmentalize them in a satisfactory way. She also didn't want to ask questions.
-
Snap! Another piece of the tuber made its way into his mouth, and he continued to chew it. The vegetable was crunchy and had a somewhat sweet, earthy taste, with a bit of spicy herbal aftertaste.
He quirked an eyebrow.
"We can talk, you know. It's not like I don't like talking."
It was just that he didn't have many opportunities to.
-
Tabea was surprised at Theo's next words (it was almost as if she was having her mind read, which she was used to in her line of work), and her face showed it, though she quickly regained control over her expression and smiled. She knew Theo wasn't psychic- she hadn't sensed it. He was just being... thoughtful-though she was hard pressed to use that word, it didn't suit him at all. "Ah.. yes. I think too much," she admitted, "Though I'm not sure what to say."
-
Theo almost seemed disappointed. Just a little. Perhaps he had been hoping to strike up conversation with a female, perhaps it was just the hormones, the virus, the disease working its subtle magic on his mind.
He stood up, and swirled the cloak around him once more, signalling his intent to continue.
"That's fine too."