In Pursuit Of Peace

[Lief]

Point Modie​

Maramere​

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A tranquil blue blanket stretched from horizon to horizon, billowing gently on the breeze and causing ripples in the tide. Each small intake of breath brought with it the very subtle sting of salty sea air, refreshing when coupled with the warm amalgamation of temperatures the planet held. Though it was warm, almost tropically so, there was a wind which blew in from the expanse of ocean she stood before that kept her from feeling overheated.

After years bundled away on the frigid world of ice and snow, places such as Maramere, and indeed Deneba where she had recently sought sanctuary, were a punch in the face on the heat index.

Luckily she had learned her lesson after traversing the desert dunes on her way to the enclave, and now - even here far from the barren wastes - she carried on her person a perpetually full flask of water. It was this that she reached for as she stood there, gazing out across the vista she had discovered, on a high rocky outcrop. Taking a sip of water she exhaled slowly, before glancing over her shoulder.

Quite a different view there, a wall of craggy rocks encompassed the City... In many ways it felt oppressive, looming overhead as it did, and the young Umbaran wanted nothing more than to step forward off the edge of the cliff, to dive into the waters below.

She knew better than that, and so instead she sighed wistfully and turned on her heels, making her way down, down, down, toward the beach below. Mysa had never really been a big fan of sand, she didn't like the way it got stuck between her toes, and clung to her skin like an itchy parasite, but the very thought of returning to the busy city streets left her feeling hollow. Wasn't the Outer Rim supposed to be less... Populated?

Visit Maramere! A paradise, away from the Core!

Rather it had been a deserted island, in truth.

Perhaps she would go for a swim after all, she found it cleared her head.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Mysa Snowstrider"]

Val had never really liked the heat.

Back home the weather was a constant, temperate. Sure there were days that scorched your skin and caused you to sweat through every layer of clothing, but every hot day was matched by one equally as cold later down the line. It didn't bother him when there was a give and take, but on a planet like this? Well it just felt unrealistic. Constant warmth, humidity, and every other miserable facet wasn't something he enjoyed...or would ever enjoy for that matter.

A slight frown pulled at his lips, eyes wandering around the cliffside.

He'd come here for much the same reason as he went anywhere else. He'd grown tired of being home. It had been a good retreat, a place to stay away from what he'd learned, but he knew that running wasn't the solution. The specter of his wife loomed over the farm, haunting him. Even now she floated after Val, pressing, prodding, encouraging.

There was no way for him to see her of course, to talk to her, but he could feel it. She had always wanted the best for him, had always wanted him to move on, and now that he'd found the opportunity to...goosebumps rose on his neck for a moment as he continued to walk, his lips thinning.

In the end he knew things would have to change, and as he stepped off the path he considered just what it would have to be.

 

[Lief]

She stepped, toes first, into the breaking tide as it ran its surf along the beach. It felt strange to be wearing as little as she was, though she remained modest of course, she wore more than most of the women she'd seen on this tropical world; simple cargo shorts, a tank top, no shoes - they had been left a little further up the beach - and yet still she was too warm. Midvinter had ruined her!

The burns she had sustained on her way to the Enclave had all but disappeared at this point, though she was wary of getting saltwater on the still quite tender areas of skin. Would it hurt? Burn moreso? She did not know. She was not used to the ocean, infact her only other experience with it had been the frigid waters of the Valkyri, and she didn't remember her time lost beneath them, only that she had washed up on a stony shore.

Her heart tugged at the reminder of her brother. She had forsaken him, too, the day she walked away from the Order they had served. The day she stepped away from her family, in pursuit of... What?

She still didn't fully understand it.

Several steps had been taken, and now the water was up to her knees. It was cooler than she had expected, a welcome change, and she took the moment to close her eyes and breathe in the fresh air. Gulls cawed overhead, she could feel the presence of countless lifeforms in the water, in the city at her back, and the Force which ran between them.

Would they understand? Would she ever speak to them again? Stop it. With a small exhale she banished such thoughts from her mind. Attachment came in many forms, it was time she learned to let such things go. It was for the best, wasn't it?

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Mysa Snowstrider"]

His head turned slightly.

The path he'd been walking on ran its course near the beach, a scenic little trail that had been created by the locals to make things a little less dreary. Val understood the thought behind it, he'd created similar things for several years back home. The forests were rife with walking trails for people there, though most of them used them for easy hunting. It was the way of a society like that, not cruel, but just a statement of what had to be in order for everyone to survive.

As he continued to walk up the small path he noticed a figure within the water.

It took him a moment or two to see what was actually standing there. His eyes were keener than most, but even he couldn't see several hundred meters without significant effort. He frowned for a moment as he stared at the girl, shrugging after a moment and veering to the left.

It might have been odd approaching her at random, but...well Val had never been one much for sticking to custom.

He was a stranger in a strange land after all. "Hello!"

His voice practically boomed out over the beach, a thunderclap among still clouds.

 

[Lief]

Something quite unexpected touched her foot.

Recoiling ever so slightly, she shot her gaze down just in time to see a little silver fish swimming out of the way of the ripples she had caused. For a moment she paused, simply watching as the creature made its way through the water, finding it strange how many things were taken for granted. How many countless fish swam within these waters? And yet never had she consciously considered it until this point, the magnitude of it all, of their habitat. So focused on her own life, and that of the Galaxy's sentient beings, that other creatures simply got... Overlooked.

She reached down, her fingertips gracing the water before her whole hand was engulfed. Many more tiny fish flocked around her, and she could see each of them through the crystalline water, had she ever seen water so pure, so transparent?

And then a voice boomed out, loud enough to send the little school running, and for Mysa to half lose her balance as she jumped in surprise. She caught herself before the water claimed her entirely, though the bottoms of her shorts were drenched by the time she stood upright once again. Her body turned, until she saw the figure in the distance, a figure who was closing in on her location.

Had she done something wrong? Was she not supposed to be down here? She had noticed the place as being remarkably empty, but she figured it was the time of day. A very slight frown played against her lips.

"Hail, friend," she said, as respectfully as she could muster in that moment, still somewhat flustered. She bowed her head toward him, before looking up and smiling. He didn't seem particularly angry. She began to wade back toward the shore, hoping to meet him half way in his path toward her. "Is all well?"

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]