The First Masterpiece.|Malagard, Khelek

[arias]

Arias arrives in the capital city of the Khelek Crystalands. The cold weather and the many days of travel has left him weary. A delicious aroma of roasted meat and something sweet reminds Arias that he has only had Bread for the last five days and at the same time the allure of the marketplace calls to him.

“This was well worth the trip” Arias says to himself.

[Darastrix]

Khelek's marketplace was relatively subdued. Merchants did not wave and call to people to view or sample their wares, though those who could be seen doing business gave off an air of gruff pride as they displayed their goods to potential customers. Likewise, the customers didn't appear hurried, despite the chill spring air. The area was filled with a low buzz as the people carried on conversations, with the occasional voice raised in protest or greeting.

The paths leading into shops or around merchant stalls were muddy with the passage of countless sets of booted feet, though the main pathways were relatively clean. A man exiting a shop slipped a hand up one sleeve and, once he reached a spot where the snow appeared clean and untouched, stepped onto the snow and continued on his way, not even leaving a footprint to mark his trail.

Some of the passers-by, mostly older folk, noticed Arias and frowned, giving the man a wide berth while muttering under their breaths about "more damned outsiders" and "Fires should stay in the bloody desert." Others seemed merely curious.

One such woman approached Arias, looking him over thoughtfully. She was pale and slim, with brown hair that appeared to have been hacked at with a knife to hang unevenly at about chin-length. There were a few scars under her left eye, as though she'd been clawed there by an animal. She wore heavy black robes trimmed with red; at first glance, the trim resembled a pattern of linked chains, but up close, it could be seen that the symbol of Soahc was repeated around her sleeves and bottom hem.

"Where are you from?" she asked by way of greeting. "You're not one of the Anarlinan knights, that's for sure. Good thing, too. Some of them are fun, but on a whole, they're too damn noble." She smirked. "You wouldn't happen to be from Naurorod, would you? That could get interesting around here."

[arias]

"Naurorod?" says Arias quizzically.
"Haven't been there before. I've heard that the mountains there are beautiful in their own way. You wouldn't happen to know where i gould get some paining supplies would you? Also i'm in dire need of some hot food and perhaps a room.The trip has tired me greatly."

Arias pauses to take a breath and rubs his gloved hands together to keep warm.

"Where are my manners? Here I am rambling away at you and I Haven't even introduced myself. The name's Arias. And you are?"

[Darastrix]

(OOC: Just a note, there are no mountains in Naurorod. What's drawn on the map is the one volcano the land is named for.)

"Shard," the woman replied. "I thought you might be from the desert since you're pretty dark." She shrugged. "Don't know where you can get painting stuff around here; being the only Wrathful means I have to spend most of my time keeping the damned Proud in line." Shard smirked at that. The Proud path in the Soahcian religion had its uses, but one couldn't let them get too high.

"But there's a couple of inns around, or if you want to save your copper, there's always cots free in any of the temple wings. We don't get a lot of visitors, even if we do get more than there used to be."

[arias]

"Temples you say.."
Arias can feel the excitement building.To Arias, temples and monasteries have always proved useful for inspiration and great artwork. Not wanting to miss such a great opportunity Arias decides to suspend the trip to the marketplace for the time being.

"Your not far off the mark. I was born in the desert but I'm from Sensatia. It's very nice to meet you Shard. I would very much like to see your Temple and it exquisite beauty. would you be so kind as to show me the way there?"

[Darastrix]

Oh. Another Mind. Shard resisted the urge to roll her eyes. What in Soahc's name kept bringing Minds into the country? They might as well name the capitol New Glaciamens and be done with it.

At the phrase "exquisite beauty," Shard let out a sharp bark of laughter. "I'll take you there," she said, turning and beckoning him to follow, "but don't hold your breath. Khelek's more about 'useful' than 'pretty.'"

The building she led him to was the typical two-floored, hexagon-shaped temple design seen across Naruta. It was built of stone, the plain edifice broken only by the occasional clear glass window.

"Not much to look at, is it? The inside's not much better," Shard told him. "The other priests add touches here and there sometimes, but it's nothing to write home about."

[arias]

Arias stares at the building. His eyes glaze over as he loses himself in thought.
The quiet air surrounding the Temple shifts just a little and Arias lets out a small gasp.

"I've found its beauty. Sometimes beauty is in the simplicity of the thing. If it is possible I would very much like to see the inside."

[Darastrix]

"Of course it's possible," Shard replied as she started into the temple. "I just told you you can get lodging here if you want, didn't I?"

From his prattling on about "beauty" and inquiry about painting supplies, she'd gathered that Arias fancied himself or was an artist of sorts. Well, she could pass him off to another priest or wing of the temple. Art just wasn't her interest.

Shard entered the main hall of the temple, where all the wings to the different Forces converged. As she'd said, there was little in the way of decoration. The most noticeable feature was the marble Force statues that stood beside the door to their temple wings.

One statue was of a stern, mature woman with a slightly swelled midsection. Across the way was a sculpture of a cloak hanging in midair. The only human feature was a pair of hands peeking out of the sleeves, one holding a sword and the other holding a set of scales. Another statue depicted a woman with her head tilted upward, away from the people who passed through the temple. Her cloak held a pattern of stars and her eyes were set with a pair of glittering gems. Another statue was of a man...woman...man? with a sardonic expression as it pointed down at a thick tome resting on a pedestal. The one across from that was of a muscular, hard-faced woman with a fur cape and a staff in her hand that would point directly at anyone who stood before her. The last statue was of a handsome, if cold-looking, man, his shoulders back, chest out, and chin up, his arms outstretched as though welcoming his well-deserved adoration.

"Pick your poison," Shard told Arias, gesturing at the statues.

[arias]

Arias stared at his surroundings. His imagination ready to leap into the unknown that is Art. Just as he was reaching for some lead and paper he remembered why he'd come here in the first place.

Arias put his hands to his side and slowly turned to face this person he'd met. As he Stared into Shard's eyes he knew that the next thing he said would bring trouble. With great patience and caution written on his face Arias Began to Speak.

"It seems to me that you can take care of yourself. For certain reasons I'm not much for fighting and what I need to do requires someone a little...seasoned in the art of combat. Would you be interested?"

[Darastrix]

"Any Wrath worth her robes can take care of herself," Shard said as she leaned against the proud-looking image of her lord. "But I can't say I'm interested if I don't know what you want. Don't beat around the bush; yank it up by the roots already."

[arias]

"A few months ago i heard a story about a hidden cavern near this city." Arias says in a low voice.
"The cavern is rumored to have a few "Undiscovered Treasures" somewhere in them. These "items" are really spoils from some forgotten war or another but i'm only interested in one. Secondly this place boasts a brilliant display of stalactites that I must paint for personal reasons. Would you be interested in accompanying me to this cavern?"

[Darastrix]

The little princess is going to hate missing this, Shard thought.

"Well, I don't have anything better to do," she replied. Threatening the Proud was entertaining for only so long, after all. "Just so you know, though, I'm not a strong-arm and I'm an Ice like most people here. If there's a big rock that needs moving, you're out of luck unless you can find an Earth or the prince gets back."