The City in the Crevices

[UnBaed 8951]

Spoiler

 

 

A depiction of the golden wastes leading toward the heart of the Sissuri'thul Empire

Art by Artur Saldos

 

The following is intended as private RP

 

The streets of Thess'ikith were filled as they usually were, the pale pathways were bathed in the heat of the sun and hardly a single cloud marred the sapphire sea of the sky.  All sorts of folk of the Empire busied themselves: skittering out from their cliff-side homes to pay visit to the markets; pilgrims sought the Temple of Three that their wayward journeys have delivered them to; both faces native to the reigned sands and foreigners of the tropic coast found there way to the city nestled in the heart of the canyon.  It was, after all, the only stop to make before the heart of the Empire could be reached in the center of these golden dunes--This city was a great oasis hidden within an array of winding ravines, bountiful in beauty and luxury, and not to mention opportunity.

 

Night had fallen over the city, and an aged, humanoid reptilian that resembled an iguana bumbled about the interior of his shop.  He was a cartographer, well-known for his skills in charting and documenting the arid sand fields that served as a merciless shield for the Empire's Heart.  That day for his business had been a slow one, though that was not unusual given fellow lizards did not seek to brave the threats of the desert often.  Many faces which sought his maps were familiar; the Guides of the Dunes, who called the sands their home and possessed the proper strength and intuition in managing the beasts that also found home in the desert.

 

Two faces which had entered his shop that day were unfamiliar to him, however.  He never even caught a glimpse of who they were, for they had donned cloaks and scarves over their heads. Perhaps they were of the marshes, given their lack of tails.  They didn't even greet him in return--saved for a wave, nor offered any form of conversation.  It was an uncharacteristic behavior within the city of Thess'ikith; It was the culture to share a warm greeting between customer and seller, and for the two to share in an exchange of three compliments to be in the good graces of the Trio, and to maintain such flattery until a deal was agreed upon.  Such healthy business is what brought such vigor within the Empire, at least that's what old Felessik the Cartographer believed.  As did many business owners.

 

He couldn't quite get those two odd guests out of his head, however.  Although they seemed like they were from The Marshes. . their stature was in contradiction to such.  Their legs were too thin and straight, and their feet too small as well as their heads.  What were these rude guests of his?  Beyond his greeting, they wouldn't even answer his questions--though at least some vague gestures.  Perhaps they didn't speak the tongue?  Yet, if that was the case, it would be massively impressive for them to have come so far into the Empire without knowing a single word of the native tongue.  As quickly as they had appeared, they had left--and disappeared into the dusk.  Perhaps there were more corners of this land that he was yet to chart.

 

Two strangers, who found themselves in an even stranger city.  Hidden amongst the crowds were these shadows, driven by curiosity to view a land far unlike their own.  Gradually did one come to further understand the similarities found between this realm and their own; yet was it to be a comfort, or a source of concern?

 

In the earlier hours of the following day, at the bank of the river which flowed through the various branches of that City-Canyon. . . there would be a flash of white light, as those two guests departed.